Ms. Hays talked about her new book, The Real Thing: Truth and Power at the Coca-Cola Company. Ms. Hays is a New York Times reporter who has followed the Coca-Cola Company for years. The book provides a history of the Coca-Cola brand, from it’s creation after the Civil War, the independent bottling partnership beginning in the 1920s, the creation of New Coke during the time of the Pepsi Challenge, to the current management’s attempts to recover after financial woes. She described 100 years of the company’s history, changes in its culture, and Coca-Cola’s status as a symbol of freedom.