Using a cheap-talk game, we theoretically demonstrate that corporate social responsibility (CSR) helps mitigate the CEO-board information asymmetry, leading to more informed advising and monitoring by the board. By optimally engaging in CSR, the board can induce stakeholder-driven information revelation and reduce its informational dependence on the CEO, which enables the shareholders to choose an ex ante higher level of board independence. For a sample of U.S. firms between 1999 and 2013, we find strong support for this strategic complementarity between board independence and the information value of CSR. Our results highlight a novel rationale for CSR – the information motive. 

Keywords: Corporate social responsibility, stakeholder-induced information revelation, cheap-talk game, endogenous information acquisition
JEL Classification: D8, G3, M14​