"This year, we see overall corporate governance, performance and leadership driving positive reputation perceptions," said Robert Fronk, senior vice president of Reputation Management at Harris Interactive.
Overall, the survey found that while Americans' opinion about corporations has improved in the wake of the 2008 economic crisis, the vast majority of people are still very skeptical about big business.
Most valuable U.S. companiesAccording to the survey, the percentage of Americans who labeled corporate reputations as "not good" or "terrible" stood at 81% in 2009, down from 88% in 2008 when the U.S. was knee deep in the crisis.
Bailed out banks and federal agencies, including Goldman Sachs (GS, Fortune 500), Citigroup, (C, Fortune 500) AIG (AIG, Fortune 500), and Fannie Mae, comprised 7 out of the 10 least reputable companies. Freddie Mac was rock bottom, with the lowest score recorded since 2005 when Enron held that spot.
0:00/5:22The best and worst of Buffett's 2009Only 18% of those surveyed said corporations had a "good" reputation. Still, this was up from 12% in 2008 and marked the first positive move in four years.
The retail and automotive industries saw the biggest improvements in their reputation ratings. The technology sector remained the highest rated industry, while financial institutions and tobacco companies held on to the lowest ranks.
The annual Reputation Quotient surveyed more than 29,000 Americans between December 29, 2009 and February 15, 2010.
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