Planned Parenthood: Undercover videos not deterring corporate donors

Are corporate donors distancing themselves from Planned Parenthood?

Since mid July, Planned Parenthood has been engulfed in controversy as an anti-abortion group has released four undercover videos of Planned Parenthood officials. The Center for Medical Progress says the videos show that Planned Parenthood is selling fetal body parts, which is against the law. Planned Parenthood says the videos are heavily-edited and “part of a decade-long pattern of illegal harassment.”

The question arises: How is the controversy impacting Planned Parenthood’s corporate donors?

Some conservative and anti-abortion sites, including Fox News and the Heritage Foundation’s Signal, have claimed that corporate sponsors are distancing themselves. “Planned Parenthood once boasted a list of sponsors that read like a who’s who of the Fortune 100, but now some of the biggest companies say they never gave money to the embattled organization,” Fox News reported this week.

But Planned Parenthood says corporate donations aren’t down; Fortune reached out to a couple corporations and found that support for Planned Parenthood hadn’t change. On the contrary, the controversy seems to have solidified support from some and led to increased donations.

Corporate donors

A top corporate donor is Credo Mobile, a California mobile provider that also funds liberal causes with its revenue — including women’s health, rainforest conservation and hunger. The company told Fortune that it has given more since the controversy. Credo gave about $100,000 in July 2015. “Our support is stronger and stronger, instead of backing away,” said Heidi Hess, Credo’s campaign manager.

In all, it has donated $3 million to the group in the 30 years since the company was founded (as Working Assets, now a unit of Credo).

“Organizations and individuals committed to a cause often continue to support a nonprofit in the face of controversy — sometimes it can even rally the base,” said Steve Delfin, president and CEO of America’s Charities, a nonprofit focused on corporate giving.

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