CEOs from Minnesota-based companies and beyond have called for federal and state cooperation to ease tensions amid the outrage over the ongoing immigration operation and the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens by federal agents.

Why it matters: This signals a potential linchpin moment for the return of corporate activism.

Driving the news: More than 60 CEOs — including 3M's William Brown, Best Buy's Corie Barry, General Mills' Jeff Harmening, Geoff Martha of Medtronic, Target's incoming CEO Michael Fiddelke and United Healthcare Group's Stephen Hemsley — signed the an open letter calling for de-escalation.

• "The recent challenges facing our state have created widespread disruption and tragic loss of life. ... With yesterday's tragic news, we are calling for an immediate deescalation of tensions and for state, local and federal officials to work together to find real solutions," they write.
• In the note, the coalition of business leaders also call for a "durable solution that enables families, businesses, our employees, and communities across Minnesota to resume our work to build a bright and prosperous future."

Yes, but: The milquetoast letter, which has drawn strong public rebukes, is unlikely to appease local employees, activists and Minnesotans.

The big picture: Since the ICE operations began, employees, community members and activists have called on Target, Delta, Home Depot, Hilton, Enterprise and other U.S. businesses to denounce the operations publicly, cut contracts with the Department of Homeland Security, and ban ICE officials from using their corporate spaces.

Industry-led coalitions are also forming.

• For example, employees across tech — from companies like Adobe, Google, Apple and Meta — signed a petition demanding CEOs cancel all company contracts with ICE and speak out publicly against the violence. (More on that below).
• OpenAI CEO Sam Altman addressed concerns in an internal Slack post, writing, "What's happening with ICE is going too far. There is a big difference between deporting violent criminals and what's happening now, and we need to get the distinction right."
• Meanwhile, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei acknowledged the turmoil in an X post as a follow-up to his latest essay: "I've been working on this essay for a while, and it is mainly about AI and about the future. But given the horror we're seeing in Minnesota, its emphasis on the importance of preserving democratic values and rights at home is particularly relevant."
• Apple CEO Tim Cook, who was criticized for attending a White House screening of First Lady Melania Trump's biopic amid the unrest, told employees on Tuesday he was "heartbroken by the events in Minneapolis" and called for de-escalation.
• Meanwhile, Patagonia has taken the strongest stance by opposing an increase in ICE funding and writing on Instagram, "We are witnessing the militarization of our cities, the expansion of unchecked enforcement power, and a campaign of terror against communities of color and immigrants. This must end."

Zoom in: Target, which found itself in the political crosshairs in recent years, faced internal backlash from employees. Many have skipped work due to safety concerns and voiced frustration over the company's silence until this point.

• On Monday, Fiddelke shared a video with employees calling the violence in Minneapolis "incredibly painful."
• "We are doing everything we can to manage what's in our control, always keeping the safety of our team and guests our top priority," he said.
• Fiddelke did not address the ICE operations or the Trump administration directly.

What to watch: Just as Americans were sheltering at home during COVID, watching the fallout from George Floyd's murder, they are now bogged down due to winter storms, scrolling social media and watching the news in real time.

• Outrage is likely to spread and seep into the workplace as it did in 2020.

Case in point ... 👇🏻

Some tech workers are pressuring the industry's top leaders to speak out against ICE after federal officers killed Alex Pretti in Minneapolis on Saturday, less than a month after the fatal shooting of Renee Good.

The big picture: The world's richest tech companies often wield unique influence over the White House. But after the two fatal shootings in Minneapolis, the companies and their CEOs have largely chosen to stay silent.

• Silicon Valley has shifted rightward this term, as many embraced President Trump's pro-AI growth and economic policies.

State of play: Hundreds of tech workers from companies including Google, Salesforce, Meta, OpenAI and Amazon have signed a letter urging CEOs to contact the White House, demand that ICE leave cities, and cancel all company contracts with ICE.

• "Tech professionals are speaking up against this brutality, and we call on all our colleagues who share our values to use their voice," states the letter organized by ICEout.tech, an initiative pushing for tech CEOs to speak out against ICE.
• "We know our industry leaders have leverage: in October, they persuaded Trump to call off a planned ICE surge in San Francisco."

The bottom line: A common refrain on social media has been that tech leaders are vocal about wealth tax and regulatory policies they dislike, but many are silent now.

Keep reading.

Bots are driving about one-third of social media discourse about the ICE operations in Minneapolis, according to data from PeakMetrics, a nonpartisan data intelligence company.

Why it matters: Bots can warp public perception of fast-moving events, as bad-faith actors seeking to inflame tensions spread misleading narratives that audiences accept as fact.

By the numbers: PeakMetrics used behavioral indicators — including posting patterns, content repetition, account age and coordination with other accounts — to analyze 2.57 million ICE and Minneapolis-related posts across X, Reddit and Instagram.

• According to the analysis, the bot activity was noticeable in English and Spanish posts.
• Bot or automated activity made up about 34.5% of the 2.2 million English-language mentions of ICE operations, while bot activity accounted for 36.6% of Spanish mentions.
• Of note, 97% of bot posts were reposts of other content.

Zoom in: Pro-ICE bot-driven narratives dominated X through coordinated retweet amplifications of repetitive messaging that portrayed ICE as being under siege. and emphasized property damage or vandalism by protesters.

• English bot content also amplified the "terrorism" description of Pretti, according to PeakMetrics.
• Meanwhile, bot accounts achieved massive reach on Reddit by cross-posting anti-ICE content to dozens of subreddits simultaneously.

The big picture: This level of bot activity is typical for newsworthy events, according to PeakMetrics.

• Bots reportedly played a hand in amplifying conservative activist Robby Starbuck's attack on corporate DEI initiatives, misinformation about the 2023 Norfolk Southern crash, and the he-said-she-said PR battle between Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively.

What to watch: As AI-generated content becomes cheaper and easier to produce, experts warn it will further supercharge bot networks.

• This could accelerate misinformation and make coordinated manipulation harder to spot in real time.

Share this story.

Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock, moderated two of the biggest interviews at Davos, Switzerland, this year, with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and Tesla CEO Elon Musk.

Why it matters: It's part of a growing trend: Add an interview with a CEO or even a new media podcast to your appearance list.

Driving the news: Fink began his Musk interview by explaining the positive stock performance of Tesla, encouraging pension funds in the room to invest in the company.

• That came after he asked the audience to cheer a second time because there "was not a large applause" when Musk first walked on stage.
• This followed Fink's interview with Huang, in which he also mentioned the returns of Nvidia since it went public.
• While mentioning a stock's performance is typical in a traditional interview led by a journalist, telling an audience to invest in a specific company would not be acceptable.

Zoom out: This is part of a growing trend of opportunities for celebrities, podcast hosts and executives to conduct interviews instead of journalists.

• Influencers and comedians are increasingly tapped to conduct red carpet interviews.
• David Rubenstein, billionaire founder of the Carlyle Group, has a long-form interview show on Bloomberg Television.
• Meanwhile, Stripe co-founder John Collison hosts a podcast called "Cheeky Pint" in which he interviews CEOs and founders in a bar setting over a beer and executives from OpenAI rotate hosting its long-form podcast.

Between the lines: These platforms allow CEOs or founders to reach targeted audiences with conversations a traditional news media outlet might not entertain.

• "If I'm a CEO, I can just go directly online and just post whatever I want to say. I don't need to go and announce it to the rest of the world via CNN," Masha Angelova, senior editorial producer at U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and previously a booker for networks like CNN and Bloomberg, told Axios.
• Angelova has noticed executives now seem to prefer a longer conversation with a peer over a short TV interview.

Zoom in: They also prefer talking to subject matter experts.

• "We're pure enthusiasts for the stuff that we talk about," TBPN co-host Jordi Hays said at a recent Axios event. "And so being insider-y just means that it's the conversations that we enjoy having."
• "People might say we don't try to do gotchas around politics, and we've, like very much, avoided political content. ... We will push people on their margins," he added, saying conversation is more interesting to him and the show's audience.

Yes, but: Executives are still doing traditional media interviews with journalists.

• A tech executive told Axios they spent most of their time in Davos on media and external appearances.

What they're saying: "Starting a podcast is a lot of work, and it's not realistic for most companies," says Emilie Gerber, founder of the public relations firm Six Eastern.

• "Producing a good show, landing strong interviews and building an audience is hard. Brands shouldn't over-optimize on going direct —appearing on existing podcasts and engaging with traditional media still delivers meaningful reach and credibility, with far less effort."

Keep reading.

Each week, I will include one AI prompt — using various LLMs — that could help communicators strategize around current headlines.

This week's prompt, using ChatGPT: "What are the pros and cons for responding to the ICE operations, fatalities and protests taking place in Minneapolis if you're the CEO of a U.S. based company?"

🤖 Here's the response...

"Pros:

• Demonstrates leadership and values: Taking a stance can show that the company cares about community safety, employees, and social issues beyond profits — which may strengthen trust with customers, employees, and local communities.
• Aligns with stakeholder expectations: In contexts where employees and customers are looking for corporate voices on polarizing public issues, a statement can help retain engagement and avoid silence being interpreted as indifference.
• Clarifies company position: A carefully worded message can emphasize commitments to community safety, de-escalation, support for lawful order, and respect for civil rights, without necessarily diving into policy prescriptions.

Cons:

• Risk of political backlash: ICE operations, immigration enforcement, and law enforcement use of force are highly politicized topics. A public statement may alienate consumers, partners, or investors on either side of the issue if not carefully framed.
• Potential brand risk: Taking a stance that appears to be political can expose the company to reputational risk among segments of the public who prefer neutrality, especially where policy views are sharply divided.
• Messaging complexity: Statements on sensitive topics need to be precise, empathetic, and legally vetted; poorly worded communication can exacerbate controversy or be misinterpreted."

👀 Then it provided guidance I didn't ask for, a "middle-ground messaging strategy":

"If advising a CEO who wants to comment but avoid undue political entanglement, you might recommend:

• A focus on safety, respect for human dignity, and support for local communities and employees, rather than explicit positions on federal policy or enforcement tactics.
• A message emphasizing commitment to peaceful resolution, collaboration with local authorities, and support for lawful protections of rights.
• Outreach that is consistent with company values and tailored to the company's stakeholders (employees, customers, community partners)."

💭 Eleanor's thought bubble: The coalition of Minnesota business leaders seemed to take ChatGPT's middle-ground position.

What are your go-to prompts? Share them for possible inclusion in the next newsletter.