2023 Thomas C. Kinnear/Journal of Public Policy & Marketing Award

Sonja Martin Poole, Sonya A. Grier, Kevin D. Thomas, Francesca Sobande, Akon E. Ekpo, Lez Trujillo Torres, Lynn A. Addington, Melinda Weekes-Laidlow, and Geraldine Rosa Henderson are the recipients of the 2023 Thomas C. Kinnear Award for their article, “Operationalizing Critical Race Theory in the Marketplace,” which appeared in the April 2021 issue (Vol. 40, No. 2) of Journal of Public Policy & Marketing.

The authors note,

We are truly honored to receive the 2023 Kinnear Award for our research which operationalizes Critical Race Theory (CRT) in the marketplace. It is especially inspirational to receive this award which recognizes a significant contribution to this topic given the current backlash to CRT. This esteemed recognition reinforces the important role race in the marketplace occupies for understanding contemporary marketing and public policy issues.

We focused on Critical Race Theory as an important framework that provides a cohesive critical perspective on the societal significance of race and racism and orients these realities of power, privilege, and oppression within existing marketing strategies. We believe that a deeper clarity on how racial dynamics in the marketplace interact with policies and practices is essential for inclusive, fair, and just marketplaces that support the well-being of all consumers.

The Transformative Consumer Research (TCR) Conference provided a generative space for us as members of a global trans-disciplinary collaborative research network to continue our efforts to critically examine race in the marketplace. In addition to the TCR community, we are truly appreciative of the support and encouragement of the JPP&M editors and staff for elevating our work. We hope that it inspires scholars to conduct further research that supports marketplace equity. We close with special recognition of our late friend, coauthor, and colleague, Geraldine “Gerri” Henderson, whose lifetime of scholarship helped blaze a path for this article to be honored and celebrated in this manner.  

Named after JPP&M’s founding editor, Thomas C. Kinnear, the award honors articles that make the most significant contribution to the understanding of marketing and public policy issues within a three-year time period. (See a list of previous award winners.) JPP&M coeditors Maura Scott and Kelly Martin oversaw the selection process.

In addition to the winning article, the other excellent finalists for the award were:

“How and Why the Collaborative Consumption of Food Leads to Overpurchasing, Overconsumption, and Waste,” by Jeffrey R. Parker, Nita Umashankar, and Martin G. Schleicher

“Mobile Phone Visual Ethnography (MpVE): Bridging Transformative Photography and Mobile Phone Ethnography,” by Benét DeBerry-Spence, Akon E. Ekpo, Daniel Hogan

About Journal of Public Policy & Marketing

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing is a forum for understanding the nexus of marketing and public policy, with each issue featuring a wide-range of topics, including, but not limited to, ecology, ethics and social responsibility, nutrition and health, regulation and deregulation, security and privacy.

About the American Marketing Association

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