Who rules America?

The website used to find this information was "Who Rules America?" The link below is the article I am speaking of: http://www2.ucsc.edu/whorulesamerica/power/corporate_community.html

I read an article about interlocking directories which is the act of two companies sharing a common link through a director of their board also sitting on the board of a another company.  Some of these directors sit on four or five boards, creating even more links from their company to another.  If a company has ten members on their board of directors, each with four or five links, they could have an interlocking directory of 40-50 companies.  Tying theses corporations together gives owners an economic advantage because it brings together a group of individuals that can bring a very specific set of skills to the table.

While in the past, most of the major corporations with interlocking directories have been banks like JP Morgan or Citigroup, or insurance companies, that has changed with the addition of Sara Lee (a food company) and 3M (an office supply company).  Both of these corporations have links to at least 31 other companies.

Another major change in banking boards is the addition of women and people of color to help "diversify" the company.  This has led to a change in the interlocking of banks because corporations are having to recruit people outside of their corporate grouping.