Tobacco company strategies to identify and promote the benefits of nicotine

Ling, Pamela M.; Glantz, Stanton A.

doi:10.1136/tobaccocontrol-2018-054300

Cited by 15 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…In a scientific arena dominated mostly by observational and retrospective studies, thus at high risk of selection, performance, adjudication and attrition bias, our project promises to provide objective and independent comparative evidence. (24) In particular, despite the small sample, the size of the study will be adequate to test adequately differences in the primary endpoint when comparing invasive effects of MRP.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A randomized trial comparing the acute coronary, systemic, and environmental effects of electronic vaping cigarettes versus heat-not-burn cigarettes in smokers of combustible cigarettes undergoing invasive coronary assessment: rationale and design of the SUR-VAPES 3 trial

Zoccai¹,

Carnevale²,

Vitali³

et al. 2020

Minerva Cardioangiol

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A randomized trial comparing the acute coronary, systemic, and environmental effects of electronic vaping cigarettes versus heat-not-burn cigarettes in smokers of combustible cigarettes undergoing invasive coronary assessment: rationale and design of the SUR-VAPES 3 trial

Zoccai¹,

Carnevale²,

Vitali³

et al. 2020

Minerva Cardioangiol

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“…These claims extend the 1970s premise that regulations restricting sugar consumption are ineffective and even harmful. In 2018 SA continued to characterize sugar as a victim because “sugar tastes so good it’s easy to believe it must be bad for you,” [93] a strategy similar to tobacco industry efforts to discredit public health efforts as being motived by people against “pleasure” [94, 95]. SA has also characterized the 2015–2020 U.S. Dietary Guidelines conclusions on sugars as ““opinion based” and not “science-based”” [96].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

In defense of sugar: a critical analysis of rhetorical strategies used in The Sugar Association’s award-winning 1976 public relations campaign

2019

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Background: In 1976, the U.S. Sugar Association (SA), a globally networked trade organization representing the cane and beet sugar industry, won the Public Relations Society of America's (PRSA) Silver Anvil Award for a crisis communication campaign. Their campaign successfully limited the diffusion of sugar restriction policies to control obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and dental caries, and marked the beginning of the modern-day SA. The sugar industry continues to resist measures to reduce sugar consumption, therefore understanding and addressing industry opposition is crucial to achieving global targets to reduce non-communicable disease. Methods: We critically analyze common crisis management rhetorical strategies used by SA to defend itself from perceived wrongdoing, and sugar from perceptions of harm using a thematic content analysis based on Hearit's Corporate Apologia theory. Data sources were internal SA documents related to the 1976 Silver Anvil Award in 1) PRSA records, 2) Great Western Sugar Company records, and 3) William Jefferson Darby Papers. Results: SA, using prototypical apologia stances (counterattack, differentiation, apology, and corrective action) and rhetorical dissociation strategies (appearance/reality, opinion/knowledge, and act/essence) constructed a persuasive narrative to successfully defend sugar from a product safety crisis, and the sugar industry from a social legitimacy crisis. SA's overarching narrative was that restricting sugar, which it claimed was a valuable food that makes healthy foods more palatable, would cause harm and that claims to the contrary were made by opportunists, pseudoscientists, food-faddists, lay nutritionists or those who had been misled by them. SA's apologia does not meet criteria for truthfulness or sincerity. Conclusion: Corporate apologia theory provides an accessible way of understanding sugar industry crisis communication strategies. It enables public health actors to recognize and predict industry corporate apologia in response to ongoing product safety and social legitimacy challenges. Industry counterarguments can be examined for truthfulness and sincerity (or the lack thereof), and explained to policymakers considering sugar restriction policies, and to the public, thereby decreasing the effectiveness of illegitimate industry communication efforts to oppose regulation and legislation.

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“…PMI and BAT were selected based on their market value [largest and second largest TNCs worldwide in 2021 ( 38 )] and existing evidence of their efforts to normalize tobacco product use and downplay tobacco product related harms ( 16 , 30 , 31 ). While PMI and BAT have developed different product portfolios across their global markets, both have used the language of harm and risk in their corporate and promotional material.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Denormalization is threatening to TTCs as it can be effective in reducing smoking initiation and increasing intention to quit ( 29 ). Philip Morris International (PMI) and British American Tobacco (BAT) have used similar tactics to downplay tobacco-related harms; leaked documents highlight normalization as a strategic focus for PMI ( 30 ), while BAT have used advertising to misleadingly emphasize nicotine's apparent similarity to other popular commercial products including chocolate and coffee ( 31 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Tobacco industry messaging around harm: Narrative framing in PMI and BAT press releases and annual reports 2011 to 2021

Fitzpatrick

Dance²,

Silver³

et al. 2022

Front. Public Health

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Influencing public perception is a key way in which all transnational corporations (TNCs) maintain market dominance and political power. Transnational tobacco companies (TTCs) have a long history of leveraging narratives to serve commercial ambitions. The global reach of these companies' narratives has been highlighted as a challenge in combatting public health problems caused by tobacco. The corporate power of TTCs is carefully curated, and their narratives play an important role in the setting of governance dynamics at local, national and transnational levels. This qualitative work explores and compares the language used by British American Tobacco (BAT) and Philip Morris International (PMI) around harm, harm reduction and terms used to refer to newer nicotine and tobacco products, including electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco products. We systematically examine framings used by these two TTCs through company reports published between 2011 and 2021. Qualitative coding was carried out by four coders, according to a protocol developed specifically for this work. We firstly identified the presence of pre-selected keywords and then assigned chunks of text containing those key words to one or more associated frames drawn from Boydstun's policy frames codebook (2013). Qualitative coding identified the most common frames from Boydstun's codebook and thematic analysis highlighted three overarching themes. The most common frames assigned were “capacity and resources”, “health and safety” and “economic” frames. The overarching themes were individualization, normalization, and regulation. These themes capture how both BAT and PMI use particular framings to downplay the role of TTCs in the perpetuation of population- and individual-level harms related to tobacco use. They seek to normalize their role in public discussions of health policy, to cast themselves as instrumental in the redress of tobacco-related inequalities and shift responsibility for the continuation of tobacco-product use onto individual consumers. These tactics are problematic for the effective and impartial development and implementation of local, national and international tobacco control agendas.

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Tobacco company strategies to identify and promote the benefits of nicotine

Cited by 15 publications

References 31 publications

A randomized trial comparing the acute coronary, systemic, and environmental effects of electronic vaping cigarettes versus heat-not-burn cigarettes in smokers of combustible cigarettes undergoing invasive coronary assessment: rationale and design of the SUR-VAPES 3 trial

A randomized trial comparing the acute coronary, systemic, and environmental effects of electronic vaping cigarettes versus heat-not-burn cigarettes in smokers of combustible cigarettes undergoing invasive coronary assessment: rationale and design of the SUR-VAPES 3 trial

In defense of sugar: a critical analysis of rhetorical strategies used in The Sugar Association’s award-winning 1976 public relations campaign

Tobacco industry messaging around harm: Narrative framing in PMI and BAT press releases and annual reports 2011 to 2021

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