"Advocates and critics have looked at the boom in the gay market with both excitement and trepidation. For some, gay and lesbian themes in advertising represent mainstream validation of their existence, while others are concerned that marketers have misrepresented the gay community by depicting it as white, male, and wealthy. Critics also suggest that the phenomenon of gay consumerism runs counter to progressive gay activism. Sender expands on these concerns, arguing that what is at stake is not only acceptance and civil rights but also the very meaning of GLBT sexual identification." "Sender's work draws on interviews with 45 professionals who work in gay marketing and media, including magazine publishers, ad directors, sales representatives, and public relations consultants. The book analyzes and gives an insider's account of how marketers conceive of gay and lesbian consumers and articulate the "gayness" of certain products."--BOOK JACKET.

Although most Arab countries remain authoritarian, many have undergone a restructuring of state-society relations in which lower- and middle-class interest groups have lost ground while big business has benefited in terms of its integration into policy-making and the opening of economic sectors that used to be state-dominated. Arab businesses have also started taking on aspects of public service provision in health, media and education that used to be the domain of the state; they have also become increasingly active in philanthropy. The ‘Arab Spring,’ which is likely to lead to a more pluralistic political order, makes it all the more important to understand business interests in the Middle East, a segment of society that on the one hand has often been close to the ancien regime, but on the other will play a pivotal role in a future social contract. Among the topics addressed by the authors are the role of business in recent regime change; the political outlook of businessmen; the consequences of economic liberalisation on the composition of business elites in the Middle East; the role of the private sector in orienting government policies; lobbying of government by business interests and the mechanisms by which governments seek to keep businesses dependent on them.

In a hard-hitting book that refutes conventional wisdom, Katherine Sender explores the connection between the business of marketing to gay consumers and the politics of gay rights and identity. She disputes some marketers'claims that marketing appeals to gay and lesbian consumers are a matter of "business, not politics" and that the business of gay marketing can be considered independently of the politics of gay rights, identity, and visibility. She contends that the gay community is not a preexisting entity that marketers simply tap into; rather it is a construction, an imagined community formed not only through political activism but also through a commercially supported media. She argues that marketing has not only been formative in the constitution of a GLBT community and identity but also has had significant impact on the visibility of gays and lesbians.

This book provides a sweeping interpretation of how business mobilized to influence public policy and elections since World War II.

Economists typically treat government as something outside the business realm, a sort of “Lord of the Manor”. Richard Wagner argues that this is the wrong approach and can ultimately be destructive to capitalism and to society. Modern governments are a peculiar form of business enterprise. They face the same problems as regular businesses, such as ascertaining demand and organizing production, and act within the system in a way that can lead to a parasitical relationship with the market. Largely rooted in political economy, this book develops new theoretical ideas and formulations to explain why democracy is a difficult form of government to maintain. The author explores how and why limited governments can morph into a system of destructive politics, and looks at ways to escape this process. This dynamic book will be useful for public choice scholars, economists, political scientists, and lawyers who are interested in political economy in its various guises.

Today, politics is big business. Most of the 6 billion spent during the 2012 campaign went to highly paid political consultants. In Building a Business of Politics, a lively history of political consulting, Adam Sheingate examines the origins of the industry and its consequences for American democracy.

Government is the source of the largest cost of doing business. Corporations and business associations must, therefore, manage the business-government relationship with uncommon skill and vigor. Charles Mack, drawing upon his long, successful experience as a practitioner and teacher, asks other corporate and association executives to rethink their current government relations programs and implement them in new, more cost-effective and technologically proficient ways. A highly readable and practical guide to lobbying in all its forms, Mack's book emphasizes managing, and shows how to apply the various means of government relations to achieve specific, important results. Mack covers all of the tactics and techniques of the field—issues research, strategies, organization and management, direct lobbying, grassroots lobbying, political action, the use of coalitions and trade associations, and public relations. He discusses the use of new computer and communications technologies, benchmarking, lobbying structures and arenas from Washington to the European Union, current management practices (including compensation), the role of interest groups, legislative and electoral politics, and the practice of government relations in other countries. Government relations people will also find a useful discussion of the legislative and political influences that determine how lawmakers vote on issues, how to organize coalitions of diverse groups and get the most of association memberships, the essentials of mobilizing legislative support at the grassroots, and what to do—and not do—when lobbying foreign countries. Mack provides a clear explanation of how government relations works at the federal, state, local, and international levels. Offering practical, day-to-day guidance to experienced and upcoming government relations executives alike, this book will also have important things to say to legislative aides and other public policy administrators. A highly readable and practical guide to lobbying in all its forms, Mack's book emphasizes managing, and how to apply the various means of government relations to achieve specific, important results.

The Political Construction of Business Interests recounts employers' struggles to define their collective social identities at turning points in capitalist development.

What are the political motivations behind firms' decisions to adopt policies that self-regulate their behavior in a manner that is beyond compliance with state, federal and local law? Public Forces and Private Politics in American Big Business advances a new understanding of the firm as a political actor that expands beyond the limited conceptualizations offered by economists and organization theorists. Timothy Werner develops a general theory of private politics that is tested using three case studies: the environment, gay rights and executive compensation. Using the conclusions of these case studies and an analysis of interviews with executives at 'Fortune 500' firms, Werner finds that politics can contribute significantly to our understanding of corporate decision-making on private policies and corporate social responsibility in the United States.

Most people believe that large corporations wield enormous political power when they lobby for policies as a cohesive bloc. With this controversial book, Mark A. Smith sets conventional wisdom on its head. In a systematic analysis of postwar lawmaking, Smith reveals that business loses in legislative battles unless it has public backing. This surprising conclusion holds because the types of issues that lead businesses to band together—such as tax rates, air pollution, and product liability—also receive the most media attention. The ensuing debates give citizens the information they need to hold their representatives accountable and make elections a choice between contrasting policy programs. Rather than succumbing to corporate America, Smith argues, representatives paradoxically become more responsive to their constituents when facing a united corporate front. Corporations gain the most influence over legislation when they work with organizations such as think tanks to shape Americans' beliefs about what government should and should not do.