---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Corporations are the new dictators."
description: "\"Corporations are the new dictators.\" — Gabriel Byrne"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1f/gabriel-byrne-14663_corporations_corporations-are-the-new-dictators-22458_2245898.jpg"
---

#  Corporations are the new dictators.

![“Corporations are the new dictators.” quote by Gabriel Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1f/gabriel-byrne-14663_corporations_corporations-are-the-new-dictators-22458_2245898.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1f/gabriel-byrne-14663_corporations_corporations-are-the-new-dictators-22458_2245898.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1f/gabriel-byrne-14663_corporations_corporations-are-the-new-dictators-22458_2245898.jpg)

> “Corporations are the new dictators.”

[Gabriel Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-byrne/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Corporate power can dominate society, acting like authoritarian regimes.

**In simple terms:** Big companies behave like dictators.

Key Takeaway

Question corporate influence on democracy.

Themes

politics economics power ethics

Mood

critical concerned

Type

political analytical

When to use this quote

- policy advocacy
- consumer activism
- ethical investing

Key Concepts

corporatocracy authoritarianism social responsibility

Questions to Reflect On

- What safeguards can limit corporate overreach?
- How to balance profit with public good?

A Different Perspective

Corporations also create jobs and innovation.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Corporations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/corporations/) [Corporations New](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/corporations-new-4415156/) [Dictators](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictators/) [New](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new/) [New Dictators](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new-dictators-5111202/)

## Related quotes

> [The government is a functionary of the corporations - and there's nothing new about that. You can find people in the 1930s talking about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/the-government-is-a-functionary-of-the-corporations-and-there-s/)

[Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/)

> [Now, the good of business is put above anything else, as corporations have become the new ruling body. Most decisions seem to be made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-casablancas/now-the-good-of-business-is-put-above-anything-else-as-corporations/)

[Julian Casablancas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-casablancas/)

> [Since FDR's New Deal, corporations and wealthy families have been non-stop finding new ways to get tax breaks, deregulation and entitlements from the government.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-mckay/since-fdr-s-new-deal-corporations-and-wealthy-families-have-been-non/)

[Adam McKay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-mckay/)

> [The people will demand answers from all the dictators and the people who have not allowed this country to function.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nawaz-sharif/the-people-will-demand-answers-from-all-the-dictators-and-the-people/)

[Nawaz Sharif](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nawaz-sharif/)

> [We immerse ourselves in escapist mass entertainment, such as 'reality T.V.' programs. We support fanatical politicians and preachers. Our politicians, in turn, support dictators…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brendan-myers/we-immerse-ourselves-in-escapist-mass-entertainment-such-as-reality-t/)

[Brendan Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brendan-myers/)

> [“I cannot forget the figures of Slobodan Milošević, Charles Taylor and Saddam Hussein, who made terrified fiefdoms out of their "own" people and mounds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-cannot-forget-the-figures-of-slobodan-milo-evi-charles-taylor-and/)

[Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/)

> [Dictators can always consolidate their tyranny by an appeal to patriotism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/dictators-can-always-consolidate-their-tyranny-by-an-appeal-to/)

[Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/)

> [Dictators don't come from elections.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-lukashenko/dictators-don-t-come-from-elections/)

[Alexander Lukashenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-lukashenko/)

> [America does not stand with dictators, and we never will and we shall never.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruben-gallego/america-does-not-stand-with-dictators-and-we-never-will-and-we-shall/)

[Ruben Gallego](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruben-gallego/)

> [Tyrants and dictators have incited hatred against ethnic and religious minorities for centuries in order to consolidate power for themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-menendez/tyrants-and-dictators-have-incited-hatred-against-ethnic-and/)

[Bob Menendez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-menendez/)

> [Dictators always look good until the last minutes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tomas-garrigue-masaryk/dictators-always-look-good-until-the-last-minutes/)

[Tomas Garrigue Masaryk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tomas-garrigue-masaryk/)

> [America has had to deal with eccentric dictators in the past: Idi Amin, Muammar Qaddafi, Ming the Merciless... but now the security of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-stewart/america-has-had-to-deal-with-eccentric-dictators-in-the-past-idi-amin/)

[Jon Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-stewart/)

> [Illicit trade corrupts corporations and governments alike, allows dictators to survive, and obscures oppression, including modern day slavery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharan-burrow/illicit-trade-corrupts-corporations-and-governments-alike-allows/)

[Sharan Burrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharan-burrow/)

> [You can do business with America or the authoritarian dictators of Beijing, who oppress their own people, put millions of Muslims in concentration camps,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-hilton/you-can-do-business-with-america-or-the-authoritarian-dictators-of/)

[Steve Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-hilton/)

> [When I was in high school in the early 1970s, we knew we were running out of oil; we knew that easy sources were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-safina/when-i-was-in-high-school-in-the-early-1970s-we-knew-we-were-running/)

[Carl Safina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-safina/)

## More by Gabriel Byrne

> [When you're still, and some actors are really brilliant at that, you bring a kind of energy to you as opposed to sending the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-byrne/when-you-re-still-and-some-actors-are-really-brilliant-at-that-you/)

[Gabriel Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-byrne/)

> [I would like to break out of this dark, brooding image, cause I'm actually not like that at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-byrne/i-would-like-to-break-out-of-this-dark-brooding-image-cause-i-m/)

[Gabriel Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-byrne/)

> [The Catholic Church is an innately conservative rock - they call themselves the 'rock of Peter' - and its resistance to change is, ironically,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-byrne/the-catholic-church-is-an-innately-conservative-rock-they-call/)

[Gabriel Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-byrne/)

> [I read a lot on the subject and had many conversations, and I have come to the conclusion that the Catholic Church is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-byrne/i-read-a-lot-on-the-subject-and-had-many-conversations-and-i-have/)

[Gabriel Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-byrne/)

> [I would like to break out of this "dark, brooding" image, cause I'm actually not like that at all. In Ireland, brooding is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-byrne/i-would-like-to-break-out-of-this-dark-brooding-image-cause-i-m-2/)

[Gabriel Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-byrne/)

> [The person I was with was organizing my birthday party, and also happens to be a good friend of mine, who is a married…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-byrne/the-person-i-was-with-was-organizing-my-birthday-party-and-also/)

[Gabriel Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-byrne/)

> [Where issues used to be, say, parochial or local in Ireland or England and so forth, all politics is global now because all business…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-byrne/where-issues-used-to-be-say-parochial-or-local-in-ireland-or-england/)

[Gabriel Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-byrne/)

> [I'm a product of my Irish culture, and I could no more lose that than I could my sense of identity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-byrne/i-m-a-product-of-my-irish-culture-and-i-could-no-more-lose-that-than/)

[Gabriel Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-byrne/)

> [When you come back to a country that you've left, you're in a very peculiar situation because, in a way, you don't belong to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-byrne/when-you-come-back-to-a-country-that-you-ve-left-you-re-in-a-very/)

[Gabriel Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-byrne/)

> [We tend to think of extremes of emotions as registering, for example, you have to cry or laugh or get angry. But for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-byrne/we-tend-to-think-of-extremes-of-emotions-as-registering-for-example/)

[Gabriel Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-byrne/)

> [No actor who's any good can say truthfully to themselves, 'Yeah, I'm good; I've got this sorted.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-byrne/no-actor-who-s-any-good-can-say-truthfully-to-themselves-yeah-i-m/)

[Gabriel Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-byrne/)

> [Every minute of every day, a child under 15 is infected with HIV - the overwhelming majority of children under 15 who are HIV-positive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-byrne/every-minute-of-every-day-a-child-under-15-is-infected-with-hiv-the/)

[Gabriel Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-byrne/)

> [Generally speaking, I don't think people know a great deal about the Viking culture, apart from the label that is usually attached to them,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-byrne/generally-speaking-i-don-t-think-people-know-a-great-deal-about-the/)

[Gabriel Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-byrne/)

> [I had one of the best days of my life. I spent the afternoon with my two kids and my ex-wife at Serendipity. Then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-byrne/i-had-one-of-the-best-days-of-my-life-i-spent-the-afternoon-with-my/)

[Gabriel Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-byrne/)

> [I would love to go back to any time in European history, especially in Irish history, to the second or third century, prior to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-byrne/i-would-love-to-go-back-to-any-time-in-european-history-especially-in/)

[Gabriel Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-byrne/)

[Explore all 45 Gabriel Byrne quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-byrne/)

## More Corporations quotes

> [It makes no sense to talk of the social obligations of the corporation without reference to its economic obligations. The two are intertwined.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-r-raymond/it-makes-no-sense-to-talk-of-the-social-obligations-of-the/)

[Lee R. Raymond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-r-raymond/)

> [I've long believed one of the mainsprings of our own liberty has been the widespread ownership of property among our people and the expectation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/i-ve-long-believed-one-of-the-mainsprings-of-our-own-liberty-has-been/)

[Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/)

> [Everything affects hip-hop. The question is, how does it affect the money that corporations are going to invest to put out different kinds of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-i-am/everything-affects-hip-hop-the-question-is-how-does-it-affect-the/)

[will.i.am](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-i-am/)

> [Corporations have nothing to do with values, and they know it, and sometimes say it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-kierans/corporations-have-nothing-to-do-with-values-and-they-know-it-and/)

[Eric Kierans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-kierans/)

> [Corporations invest in sophisticated CRM, or Customer Relationship Management, programs to effectively oversee their relationship with their customers at every point during the buying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-ostrofsky/corporations-invest-in-sophisticated-crm-or-customer-relationship/)

[Marc Ostrofsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-ostrofsky/)

> [“Whatever happened in those more than one hundred years, from the time my great-great-great grandfather studied law to the time when my own father…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gwenn-wright/whatever-happened-in-those-more-than-one-hundred-years-from-the-time/)

[Gwenn Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gwenn-wright/)

> [I am somewhat influenced by the years that I've spent trying to actually get things done, whether it was reforming education in Arkansas or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/i-am-somewhat-influenced-by-the-years-that-i-ve-spent-trying-to/)

[Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/)

> [There are questions as to whether it should even exist. Who should corporations be responsive to, the management of a corporation? Theoretically they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-are-questions-as-to-whether-it-should-even-exist-who-should/)

[Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/)

> [“Subsequently there ensues an epoch of complex, proliferating intrigues and conspiracies among the ranks of double agents, whose agendas become so densely intertwined that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-ligotti/subsequently-there-ensues-an-epoch-of-complex-proliferating-intrigues/)

[Thomas Ligotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-ligotti/)

> [I'm not only a fan of Apple products, I have stock in the company. I think Steve Jobs has started one of the greatest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kid-rock/i-m-not-only-a-fan-of-apple-products-i-have-stock-in-the-company-i/)

[Kid Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kid-rock/)

> [At Epcot Center the Disney corporation has focused its attention on two things greatly in need of Disneyfication: the tedious future and the annoying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/at-epcot-center-the-disney-corporation-has-focused-its-attention-on/)

[P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/)

> [There can be no effective control of corporations while their political activity remains.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/there-can-be-no-effective-control-of-corporations-while-their/)

[Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/)

> [Since FDR's New Deal, corporations and wealthy families have been non-stop finding new ways to get tax breaks, deregulation and entitlements from the government.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-mckay/since-fdr-s-new-deal-corporations-and-wealthy-families-have-been-non/)

[Adam McKay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-mckay/)

> [There's a whole journalistic-industrial complex dedicated to keeping newsprint, TV screens and radio waves clean of destabilizing scoops damaging to corporations or the state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-cockburn/there-s-a-whole-journalistic-industrial-complex-dedicated-to-keeping/)

[Alexander Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-cockburn/)

> [They're counting on your patriotism to distract you from their plunder. They're counting on you to be standing at attention with your hand over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-moyers/they-re-counting-on-your-patriotism-to-distract-you-from-their/)

[Bill Moyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-moyers/)

[Browse all 1,673 Corporations quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/corporations/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Corporations are the new dictators.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Gabriel Byrne"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-byrne/corporations-are-the-new-dictators/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Corporations"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-byrne/corporations-are-the-new-dictators/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1f/gabriel-byrne-14663_corporations_corporations-are-the-new-dictators-22458_2245898.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1f/gabriel-byrne-14663_corporations_corporations-are-the-new-dictators-22458_2245898.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1f/gabriel-byrne-14663_corporations_corporations-are-the-new-dictators-22458_2245898.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Corporations are the new dictators.” — Gabriel Byrne",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Gabriel Byrne",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-byrne/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Corporations are the new dictators.",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-byrne/corporations-are-the-new-dictators/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-byrne/corporations-are-the-new-dictators/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
