UN Global Compact Summit: Does/Should Anybody Care?

The UN Global Compact convened a “leaders summit” in Geneva this past Friday and Saturday, drawing hundreds of corporate officers, NGO and IO representatives. Though most participants look to have been at the senior VP level or equivalent (here is the list), among them were the CEO of Coca-Cola, the Secretary-General of Amnesty International, and a handful of academics (almost all from business schools, with the notable exception of “special guest” Jeffrey Sachs). UNSG Ban Ki-Moon kicked off the program.

So my question is: why did the meeting get almost no attention in the mainstream media (or anywhere else, for that matter)? It could be that this process is a pretty meaningless one, or at least so embroynic as to not merit the column inches at this time. Participants adopted a manifesto of sorts (the “Geneva Declaration“), vaunting good global corporate citizenship at a fairly high level of generality. Like: “Responsible business practices can contribute to social and economic inclusion, helping to advance international cooperation, peace, development, and the protection of human rights – the fundamental goals of the United Nations.” But pap-filled communiques are a part of high-profile governmental gatherings as well, of course.

On the other hand, serious people are involved, and I have to think (from a distance) that something interesting is probably going on here, perhaps the foundation-laying of a direct corporate link to international institutions. In that case, might the old beat system in American journalism explain the media silence? Who would want to cover this story? Not anyone with a political assignment. Probably not anyone from the business section, either, since the gathering was cross-sectoral and cross-issue (Forbes appears to have been the only major outlet of any kind devoting any coverage to the summit, see here, along with a few items from the wires). And stretched reporters in European bureaux wouldn’t be likely to take the time getting up to speed for a one-off event with low headline-grabbing potential. (It’s interesting how the ICTY started getting a lot more coverage when the Dutch-born Marlise Simons started taking an interest out of the NYT’s Paris bureau, though I doubt she had any relevant background.) And unlike Davos, no celebrities to hobnob with.

This isn’t to indict the Times and the other major papers for ignoring the event. But it may go to show that there is important stuff happening under the radar screen.