CEO Activism And The Corporate Battle Against The Confederate Flag

03:51

June 24, 2015

The South Carolina and American flags fly at half-staff behind the Confederate flag, in front of the State House in Columbia, South Carolina on June 19, 2015. (Mladen Antonov/AFP/Getty Images)

As politicians across the South are stepping in to call for the removal of the Confederate battle flag and other symbols of the Confederacy, big businesses are also joining the fray. Wal-Mart, eBay, Amazon and others have promised to pull merchandise tied to the flag, in some cases adding strong arguments against the products.

Maggie Lake of CNN tells Here & Now's Jeremy Hobson that this is just the latest example of corporate activism, highlighting previous movements from Apple for gay rights and Starbucks against guns. But is it based on moral beliefs, or is it just business?

A search for Confederate flags in Google Shopping on June 24, 2015, did not match any shopping results. (Screenshot)

Guest

Maggie Lake, business reporter for CNN. She tweets @maggielake.

This segment aired on June 24, 2015.