Wal-Mart in Cultural Crossfire

Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT) has put a lot of effort into revamping its image in the face of some consumers' criticism. But now the company may be confronting an issue that won't be quite so easy to handle.

Historically, Wal-Mart has appeased conservative groups on certain issues. A Los Angeles Times article today notes that the American Family Association, a national Christian association, has successfully lobbied the company to stop selling magazines the group considered indecent, including FHM, Maxim, and Stuff. Now, the American Family Association wants another item removed from Wal-Mart shelves: DVDs of BrokebackMountain, the Academy Award-winning movie about two cowboys who fall in love with one another.

The issue definitely presents a conundrum for Wal-Mart. As the American Family Association rightly points out, BrokebackMountain wasn't a blockbuster. It grossed $83 million in U.S. ticket sales, so it's questionable whether the DVD would be a major moneymaker for the company. Still, its removal would surely prompt howls of protest from some of the more progressive groups that Wal-Mart is aiming to please, while its continued sale could lead to Wal-Mart boycotts from the American Family Association's three million members and other conservative groups.

In its recent attempts to polish its image among more progressive consumers, Wal-Mart has experimented with renewable energy to power its stores, voiced support for an increase in the minimum wage, and launched an initiative to boost the number of organic grocery items it sells. Despite its "Always Low Prices!" mantra, Wal-Mart is clearly attempting to convince consumers that it cares about more than just the bottom line.

The image makeover is an understandable business strategy. After successfully marching across conservative rural America, Wal-Mart is trying to expand into urban areas that are home to more left-leaning folks. These people object to some of the company's practices, including the low wages it pays its workers, and they have sometimes successfully stymied the company's expansion. The beauty of Wal-Mart's recent moves is that they are likely to please urban consumers and clear the way for expansion without driving off the firm's more conservative rural customer base.

Now it may have to choose between the two; in this case, Wal-Mart seems likely to keep selling BrokebackMountain. Continuous store expansion has always been a key component of its strategy, and the firm probably doesn't want to give opponents any additional incentive to block future openings. Even so, investors should be aware that Wal-Mart's stand may come with some pain as conservative groups react.

For more on Wal-Mart, check out these stories:

• The Greening of Wal-Mart?
• Wal-Mart's Upper-Crust Snobbery
• Wal-Mart: The Retail Pariah

Fool contributor Brian Gorman is a freelance writer in Chicago. He does not own shares of any companies mentioned in this article.