Multinational Corporation

The term multinational corporation technically is properly used to refer to  a corporation with independent operations in multiple countries, acting in each as if it were a national corporation loyal to the interests of the host country and its people. It is the artful term of choice of corporate PR because it implies a commitment to good citizenship everywhere.

    It is, however, seriously misleading because the corporations in question are more most often global or transnational corporations that accept no obligation or loyalty to the interests of any nation, place, or people other than those of their top managers and largest shareholders. It is unfortunate that even citizens engaged in challenging corporate rule often use the term multinational corporation, which plays into the corporate PR fiction of place based citizenship citizenship and thus undermines their own case.