In our "Next 50 Years" booklet, we predicted that in the next decade Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) would become the staple of the PR industry. Based on recent developments, I don't think it will take that long. On a recent trip to China, I noticed that every multinational company doing business in that fast-growing market is engaged in some type of CSR program. Microsoft is providing computer training to laid-off workers. Kodak is providing scholarships to deserving young people from rural communities. IBM is creating learning centers in schools. And all of these efforts are getting coverage in the Chinese press.
Here in the US, the Wall Street Journal is running a weekly column on philanthropy, and the group Business for Social Responsibility created a special insert in the paper talking about the growing trend, with features on a dozen different companies.

On Monday, November 13, the New York Times ran their section on CSR under the title of "Giving." In that 40+ page supplement, they profiled a whole range of programs from Bono's Red to Pierre Omidyar’s Network.

Every company seems to be focusing more resources and attention on its contributions to the community. In the New York Times, one retail executive was quoted as saying, “Philanthropy defines us more than anything else.”

As more companies join this powerful movement, the competition for coverage will become more intense. Now that Warren Buffet has raised the stakes with his $30 billion contribution to the Gates Foundation, it will require greater commitment to attract the public's attention and with names like Angelina Jolie, Bill Clinton and Richard Branson grabbing the headlines, it will be harder for the average non-profit to break through the clutter.

As we move into the future, more media – online and off – will chronicle corporate contributions to society. Increasingly, PR's job will be to help corporations find the appropriate way to merchandise their good deeds, without commercializing their goodwill.