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Play It Again is a section of the journal where we republish quotes, gaffes, and immortal lines from friends and foes of tobacco control. It is compiled by Gene Borio, the webmaster of Tobacco BBS, which is the premier tobacco newsgathering site on the internet. Send contributions (including an original version or photocopy of the sourced item) to him at Tobacco BBS, PO Box 359, Village Station, New York 10014-0359; fax 001 212 260 6825. Send quotes from online stories (including the full article) or scanned documents (in GIF or JPEG format), to gborio@mindspring.com
“Working to make a difference. The people of Philip Morris.”
Source: Simon, E. Philip Morris investing millions in a new image, “The Times” 2000 July 2.
Philip Morris' USA's massive effort to lift itself from the bottom three of corporate reputations has been examined in several articles. Certainly, its unprecedented $160 million media saturation campaign, along with similar if less costly efforts from Browns & Williamson (B&W), RJ Reynolds (RJR), and Lorillard, offer ready cover for politicians, charities, and others to accept industry largesse with equanimity. In addition, jurors may get the impression the industry has changed, and feel that awarding large punitive damages may end up depriving worthy causes of much needed funds.
Most Tobacco Control readers are well aware of the general purposes of the industry's unprecedented struggle to inject itself into the public dialogue, but the extent and specifics of the movement can be startling. Thus, this edition of Play It Again focuses on the industry's game of “give and tell”.
A few examples
“The American Lung Association asks that ABCNews.com review and revise its procedure for accepting advertising on its health related sites. Ads by Philip Morris should cease immediately. An industry that causes death and disease throughout the world has …