Month: September 2017

The National Football League (NFL) has been criticised in recent days by President Donald Trump for its players showing signs of protest during the national anthem (Berg, 2017). Trump called for viewers to stop watching the NFL while players protest, and for the league to punish players who “disrespect” the country (Berg, 2017).

Trump has made watching the NFL an ethical dilemma for viewers, watching the NFL in Trump’s opinion is unpatriotic and unamerican, and this ethical controversy has the potential to be disastrous for the NFL and networks. CBS, NBC, and Fox among others pay around 7 billion dollars collectively for NFL broadcasting rights (Badenhausen, 2017). In the past this has been highly profitable for networks, in 2015 alone, ad revenue hit a record 3.5 billion dollars (Badenhausen, 2017). Profitability for networks could change moving forward however, as preliminary numbers show the impact Trump’s comments have had. NBC and Fox’s broadcasts of Sunday football saw a decrease in viewership of 11% and 16% respectively (Berg, 2017). Fewer viewers could have large consequences on the thriving advertising business of the NFL. Airing an advertisement during a regular season football broadcast currently costs somewhere between 300 and 600 thousand dollars depending on the network (Badenhausen, 2017). However, if fewer people are watching games due to ethical concerns, advertising during football broadcasts will be less desirable and impact the revenues of network’s paying billions for broadcasting rights.

Trump’s comments may also affect sponsors of the NFL such as McDonald’s and FedEx (Tsang & De La Merced, 2017). Sponsors of the NFL looking to avoid controversy may revoke their support and negatively impact the NFL from a financial perspective. Furthermore, this debate could financially affect players who protest during the anthem as owners may not offer a contract to a player to avoid controversy (Felix, 2017). Evidence of protests hurting a player financially can be seen in the case of quarterback Colin Kaepernick. After becoming a free agent last summer, many less qualified and capable players were signed over Kaepernick, due to the controversy surrounding him.

Trump has put the NFL in a tough position, the league has to deal with its public perception; a league that condones unpatriotic behaviour, or upset its players by punishing protesting. This controversy has put the future of the NFL on the viewer who must decide whether to watch, sponsor’s choosing to endorse the NFL, and players who choose to protest. Likely the NFL will do nothing to punish players or restrict their right to protest, which may cause the league to struggle in the short term, but will not alienate players. The ethical debate of protests during the anthem and how the NFL handles it will play a large part in the league’s future.

Word Count: 448

Works Cited

Amie Tsang And Michael J. De La Merced. (2017, September 25). Pain for N.F.L. Partners; German Elections: DealBook Briefing. Retrieved September 26, 2017, from https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/25/business/dealbook/trump-nfl-protests.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fbusiness

Badenhausen, K. (2017, March 01). NFL TV Ad Revenue Hits Record $3.5 Billion Despite Drop In Ratings. Retrieved September 26, 2017, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/kurtbadenhausen/2017/03/01/nfl-tv-ad-revenue-hits-record-3-5-billion-despite-drop-in-ratings/#468be8ca525b

Berg, M. (2017, September 25). As Trump Attacks NFL, Weekend Ratings Are Mixed. Retrieved September 26, 2017, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/maddieberg/2017/09/25/as-trump-attacks-nfl-weekend-ratings-are-mixed/#7395979ce163

Félix, D. S. (2017, September 24). What Will Taking the Knee Mean Now? Retrieved September 26, 2017, from https://www.newyorker.com/culture/annals-of-appearances/what-will-taking-the-knee-mean-now

McArdle, M. (2017, September 25). The NFL Can’t Afford to Become a Battleground. Retrieved September 26, 2017, from https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2017-09-25/the-nfl-can-t-afford-to-become-a-battleground

Smith, G. (2017, September 25). NFL Sunday Ratings Fall After Trump’s Call for Games Boycott. Retrieved September 26, 2017, from https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-09-25/nfl-ratings-mixed-after-trump-s-call-for-boycott-of-games

In the fall of 2016, Mylan, the company responsible for the production of the Epi-Pen, came under scrutiny after their product’s price continued to rise (Reuters, 2016). Epi-Pens, essential to about one in thirteen children with anaphylactic allergies have seen their price rise by 400% since the Mylan acquired the company Epi-Pen in 2007 (Matthews & Heimer, 2016). Mylan gradually raised the price of Epi-Pens exploiting their monopoly over the market and the essential nature of their product earning 300 million dollars in compensation between 2011 and 2015 for their top executives in addition to high stock prices (Tuttle, 2016). Since their exploits came to the forefront, the company has paid 465 million in compensation for misclassifying the drug as generic, which means it qualified for less of a rebate in health plans (Reuters, 2016). Additionally, Mylan’s stock price underwent a precipitous 15% drop following the scandal, the lowest it had been in 30 years, showing the extreme consequences of their actions (Reuters, 2016).

The Mylan Epi-Pen scandal outlines many of the ideas discussed by Milton Friedman of social responsibility and business ethics. The company ignored its social responsibility to extreme levels, making their product, necessary for many, inaccessible. The company acted in its own self-interest accruing massive profits and compensation for its employees and shareholders. Although Mylan’s actions were unethical, they were rational from a profit perspective. If they had priced the drug to benefit society, executives of the company would be fired for not taking advantage of their monopoly over the market. While the price increases were admittedly extreme, shareholders would have cycled through executives until they felt that the product was at a lucrative price point. Mylan needed to strike a balance, recognizing their social responsibility while also finding a profitable price point. Their actions show the dangers of exploiting the market, as by completely ignoring its social responsibility, they were not only financially crippled but their reputation was tarnished as well. Additionally, Mylan’s actions show that many unethical and socially irresponsible actions can go unnoticed and unregulated. This is where the government must intervene, either setting an artificial price ceiling or introducing competition into the market as it is inexcusable for a company to avoid regulation for nearly a decade.

Mylan’s case illustrates an extreme of Friedman’s theory, showing that if given the opportunity, companies will operate to make a profit rather than benefit society, often to their detriment in the long run.

Word Count: 406

Works Cited

Tuttle, B (2016) EpiPen Prices: Mylan CEO Heather Bresch & Big Pharma Scandal, Money.              Retrieved from http://time.com/money/4502891/epipen-pricing-scandal-big-pharma-politics/

Reuters. (2016), Mylan’s Stock Is the Lowest It’s Been in 30 Years (2016). Retrieved from http://fortune.com/2016/09/21/mylan-stock-low/

Reuters. (2016), Mylan To Pay $465 Million Over EpiPen Medicaid Rebate Dispute. Retrieved from http://fortune.com/2016/10/07/mylan-pay-epipen-medicaid-rebate-dispute/

Mathews, C., & Heimer, M (2016) The Five Biggest Corporate Scandals of 2016, Fortune. Retrieved from: http://fortune.com/2016/12/28/biggest-corporate-scandals-2016/

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