Christopher Miller on Ben and Jerry’s Flavor for Activism

PR Future, the USC Center for Public Relations Podcast

Ben and Jerry’s has always been known for serving delicious ice cream with extra scoops of peace, love and justice. Social mission has always been an integral part of the company’s day-to-day operations — so much so that Ben and Jerry’s has their own in-house activism department.

Christopher Miller is the head of this activism team. A few months ago, he drafted Ben and Jerry's second statement in support of Black Lives Matter following the killing of George Floyd, which was lauded within the PR industry as one of the most successful corporate statements on racial justice.

In this episode, Christopher discusses how Ben and Jerry’s embeds activism into everything they do, including their ice cream flavors. He provides valuable insights into the importance of forming strong partnerships with activist groups that go beyond philanthropy, how to unlock the potential that all corporations have to play a role in large-scale social change and how to authentically speak out on issues that matter.

This discussion is part of our series reviewing the 2020 Global Communication Report on New Activism, which is available for free download at www.annenberg.usc.edu/gcr

Featuring:

Christopher Miller (@cmwdc), Head of Global Activism Strategy at Ben and Jerry’s

Host:

Fred Cook (@fredcook), Chairman of Golin, a global PR firm. Author of “Improvise - Unorthodox Career Advice from an Unlikely CEO” and Director of the USC Center for Public Relations

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A production of the USC Annenberg Center for Public Relations at the University of Southern California.