African media coverage of tobacco industry corporate social responsibility initiatives

Guidelines for implementing the World Health Organization's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) recommend prohibiting tobacco industry corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives, but few African countries have done so. We examined African media coverage of tobacco industry CSR initiatives to understand whether and how such initiatives were presented to the public and policymakers. We searched two online media databases (Lexis Nexis and Access World News) for all news items published from 1998 to 2013, coding retrieved items through a collaborative, iterative process. We analysed the volume, type, provenance, slant and content of coverage, including the presence of tobacco control or tobacco interest themes. We found 288 news items; most were news stories published in print newspapers. The majority of news stories relied solely on tobacco industry representatives as news sources, and portrayed tobacco industry CSR positively. When public health voices and tobacco control themes were included, news items were less likely to have a positive slant. This suggests that there is a foundation on which to build media advocacy efforts. Drawing links between implementing the FCTC and prohibiting or curtailing tobacco industry CSR programmes may result in more public dialogue in the media about the negative impacts of tobacco company CSR initiatives.     

Shared vision,shared vulnerability: A content analysis of corporate social responsibility information on tobacco industry websites

Tobacco companies rely on corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives to improve their public image and advance their political objectives, which include thwarting or undermining tobacco control policies. For these reasons, implementation guidelines for the World Health Organization's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) recommend curtailing or prohibiting tobacco industry CSR. To understand how and where major tobacco companies focus their CSR resources, we explored CSR-related content on 4 US and 4 multinational tobacco company websites in February 2014. The websites described a range of CSR-related activities, many common across all companies, and no programs were unique to a particular company. The websites mentioned CSR activities in 58 countries, representing nearly every region of the world. Tobacco companies appear to have a shared vision about what constitutes CSR, due perhaps to shared vulnerabilities. Most countries that host tobacco company CSR programs are parties to the FCTC, highlighting the need for full implementation of the treaty, and for funding to monitor CSR activity, replace industry philanthropy, and enforce existing bans.     

健康传播视角下慢性病防控报道内容分析

目的了解2012年全国疾控系统有关慢性病防治的媒体报道现状。方法利用清华大学自主研发的舆情监测软件X—GOT,对监测时域内（2012年1月1日—2012年12月31日）涉及疾控中心的网络报道进行收集,使用传播学中的内容分析法,从报道时间、媒体级别、报道体裁、报道倾向等方面进行定量分析,对报道主题进行定性分析。结果2012年的1264篇报道出现了3个小高峰,分别为5月（14．7％）、8月（14．2％）和11月（11．3％）。从报道体裁来看,64％为消息类报道,30．1％为特稿类,评论性报道仅占4．8％,中央媒体、本地媒体和非本地媒体对新闻报道的体裁选择差异有统计学意义（P〈0．001）。媒体报道以中立为主,占所有报道的62．7％。有关控烟、营养和健康生活方式的报道主题最多,分别占总数的29．8％、23．3％和21．6％。34．1％的报道涉及政府举措。结论大众媒体在传播慢性病防治知识和引导舆论导向方面发挥了积极的作用。但需加强心脑血管疾病、肿瘤、口腔卫生、精神卫生等领域专家与媒体记者的合作,共同推动慢性病防控宣传。     

Newspaper coverage of tobacco control in New Zealand

Objective : The New Zealand (NZ) government has proposed that the country be ‘Smokefree’ by 2025. This paper examines how NZ newspapers have portrayed tobacco control initiatives to achieve this goal. Method : We examined tobacco‐related articles from NZ newspapers published between 1 November 2011 and 31 October 2012, using a coding frame to capture smoking themes, portrayal of actions and degree of support expressed for various pro‐ and anti‐ tobacco control objectives. Results : A total of 537 separate articles were obtained from national and regional newspapers. Six themes appeared in more than 5% of the total articles: Smokefree 2025; smokefree areas; pricing; tobacco industry; plain packaging; and cessation. Overall, articles on tobacco smoking were three times more likely to emphasise actions consonant with tobacco control objectives rather than against them, and to report them with a positive rather than negative tone. Conclusions : NZ tobacco control advocates can take heart from the nature and extent of coverage of tobacco control initiatives. Opportunities for further media advocacy are discussed.     

The good news about smoking: how do U.S. newspapers cover tobacco issues?

Media advocacy, or advocacy seeking media attention, can shape the policy environment, but the relationship between the nature of news media coverage of public health topics and policy outcomes has received insufficient research attention. We present the first large-scale study of news coverage of tobacco to focus on the potential impact for policy outcomes. Through our analysis of 9859 tobacco-focused news articles from ioo leading US daily newspapers between 2001 and 2003 we examined whether tobacco issues are newsworthy, and if so, whether coverage is favorable to policy progress. We found strong evidence for news-worthiness, and a tendency for coverage to highlight policy approaches to tackling tobacco. Coverage emphasized successes rather than setbacks, and newspaper editors lent support to tobacco control positions. There were, however, areas that did not garner sufficient attention to sustain a meaningful policy message. Our analysis of coverage of controversial issues also revealed areas where tobacco control efforts seem to pushing against ideological boundaries.     

A grim contradiction: the practice and consequences of corporate social responsibility by British American Tobacco in Malaysia

In the wake of the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, corporate social responsibility (CSR) is among the few remaining mechanisms for tobacco corporations publicly to promote their interests. Health advocates may be unaware of the scale, nature and implications of tobacco industry CSR. This investigation aimed to construct a typology of tobacco industry CSR through a case study of the evolution and impact of CSR activities of a particular tobacco corporation in one country - British American Tobacco, Malaysia (BATM), the Malaysian market leader. Methods included searching, compiling and critically appraising publicly available materials from British American Tobacco, BATM, published literature and other sources. The study examined BATM's CSR strategy, the issues which it raises, consequences for tobacco control and potential responses by health advocates. The investigation found that BATM's CSR activities included assistance to tobacco growers, charitable donations, scholarships, involvement in anti-smuggling measures, 'youth smoking prevention' programs and annual Social Reports. BATM has stated that its model is predominantly motivated by social and stakeholder obligations. Its CSR activities have, however, had the additional benefits of contributing to a favourable image, deflecting criticism and establishing a modus vivendi with regulators that assists BATM's continued operations and profitability. It is imperative that health advocates highlight the potential conflicts inherent in such arrangements and develop strategies to address the concerns raised.     

Characteristics of Community Newspaper Coverage of Tobacco Control and Its Relationship to the Passage of Tobacco Ordinances

To answer the call for more systematic surveillance, analysis and evaluation of tobacco news coverage, a 6-year content analysis of newspaper stories from Missouri was conducted to evaluate the presence of public health facts and characteristics of stories framed for or against tobacco control. The method was a content analysis of all Missouri newspapers (N = 381) from September 2006 to November 2011 for a total sample of 4711. Results were connected to the larger, societal context within which newspaper stories reside, i.e., towns that passed or did not pass a smoke-free ordinance during the project intervention. Results showed the majority of news stories were about tobacco control, which were mostly written at the local level, were episodic, and carried a positive slant toward tobacco control. However, there were more negative than positive headlines, and more negative editorials than non-editorials. Tobacco control stories used fewer public health facts than non-tobacco control stories. Towns with existing smoke-free ordinances had more tobacco control stories, and towns without smoke-free ordinances had fewer tobacco control stories and more non-tobacco control stories, suggesting a connection between news media coverage and the passage of smoke-free policies. We conclude that the tobacco industry may have had success in impacting news stories in no-ordinance cities by diverting attention from tobacco control to secondary topics, such as youth smoking, which meant stories had fewer public health facts and fewer positive health benefits in towns that may have needed these details most.     

Attempts to undermine tobacco control: tobacco industry "youth smoking prevention" programs to undermine meaningful tobacco control in Latin America

We sought to understand how the tobacco industry uses "youth smoking prevention" programs in Latin America. We analyzed tobacco industry documents, so-called "social reports," media reports, and material provided by Latin American public health advocates. Since the early 1990s, multinational tobacco companies have promoted "youth smoking prevention" programs as part of their "Corporate Social Responsibility" campaigns. The companies also partnered with third-party allies in Latin America, most notably nonprofit educational organizations and education and health ministries. Even though there is no evidence that these programs reduce smoking among youths, they have met the industry's goal of portraying the companies as concerned corporate citizens and undermining effective tobacco control interventions that are required by the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.     

Political coalitions for mutual advantage: the case of the Tobacco Institute's Labor Management Committee

In 1984, the tobacco workers' union and the Tobacco Institute, which represents US tobacco companies, formed a labor management committee (LMC). The institute relied on LMC unions to resist smoke-free worksite rules.In a review of the internal tobacco industry documents now publicly available, we found that the LMC succeeded for 2 primary reasons. First, the LMC furthered members' interests, allowing them to overcome institutional barriers to policy success. Second, the LMC used an "institutions, ideas, and interests" strategy to encourage non-LMC unions to oppose smoke-free worksite rules.While public health advocates missed an opportunity to partner with unions on the issue of smoke-free worksites during the era studied, they can use a similar strategy to form coalitions with unions.     

Tobacco industry surveillance of public health groups: the case of STAT (Stop Teenage Addiction to Tobacco) and INFACT (Infant Formula Action Coalition)

OBJECTIVES: The goal of this study was to describe how the tobacco industry collects information about public health groups. METHODS: Publicly available internal tobacco industry documents were reviewed and analyzed using a chronological case study approach. RESULTS: The industry engaged in aggressive intelligence gathering, used intermediaries to obtain materials under false pretenses, sent public relations spies to the organizations' meetings, and covertly taped strategy sessions. Other industry strategies included publicly minimizing the effects of boycotts, painting health advocates as "extreme," identifying and exploiting disagreements, and planning to "redirect the funding" of tobacco control organizations to other purposes. CONCLUSIONS: Public health advocates often make light of tobacco industry observers, but industry surveillance may be real, intense, and covert and may obstruct public health initiatives.     

2011年江苏省烟草控制相关媒体监测信息分析

目的分析2011年江苏省内报纸和互联网刊登烟草控制相关信息情况,探讨媒体在公共卫生领域的作用。方法借助专业剪报机构收集并筛选江苏省报纸及互联网刊登的烟草控制相关信息,并进行统计分析。结果2011年内共收集到江苏省内78家媒体报道的烟草控制相关信息343条,主要来源于《扬子晚报》、《现代快报》等知名媒体,信息发布主要集中在5—6月份,接近70％的信息主题为无烟环境,约50％为正面报道。结论媒体是公共卫生机构与社会公众沟通的桥梁,卫生机构人员应及时跟踪媒体动向,掌握媒体报道,充分利用媒体进行控烟宣传,提高公众健康意识,促进公众健康。     

Breaking the alliance: Defeating the tobacco industry's allies and enacting youth access restrictions in Massachusetts

OBJECTIVES: We describe the tobacco industry's effort in Massachusetts to block the adoption of local regulations designed to reduce youth access to tobacco products. We also explain how state-funded tobacco control advocates overcame industry opposition. METHODS: We examined internal tobacco industry documents and records of local boards of health and conducted interviews with participants in local regulatory debates. RESULTS: The industry fought proposed regulations by working through a trade group, the New England Convenience Store Association. With industry direction and financing, the association's members argued against proposed regulations in local public hearings. However, these efforts failed because community-based advocates worked assiduously to cultivate support for the regulations among board of health members and local community organizations. CONCLUSIONS: Passage of youth access regulations by local boards of health in Massachusetts is attributed to ongoing state funding for local tobacco control initiatives, agreement on common policy goals among tobacco control advocates, and a strategy of persuading boards of health to adopt and enforce their own local regulations.     

The rise and fall of tobacco control media campaigns, 1967 2006

Extensive research has demonstrated that public education through media campaigns is an effective means to reduce smoking prevalence and tobacco consumption. Aggressive media campaigns that confront the tobacco industry's deceptive practices are most effective and are therefore a prime target for attack. The tobacco industry has attacked public tobacco control media campaigns since 1967, when the first public tobacco control media advertisements ran. Through studying tobacco control media campaigns in Arizona, California, Florida, Massachusetts, Minnesota, and Oregon, and of the American Legacy Foundation, we identified industry strategies to prevent a campaign's creation, limit the target audience and the content of the messages, limit or eliminate the campaign's funding, and pursue litigation against the campaigns. Tobacco control advocates must learn from the past and continue to confront the tobacco industry and its third-party allies to defend antitobacco media campaigns or, despite evidence of their effectiveness, they will be eliminated.     

“Anti-Smoking Data Are Exaggerated” Versus “The Data Are Clear and Indisputable”: Examining Letters to the Editor About Tobacco

Media advocacy plays a unique role in tobacco control policy development. Letters to the editor in particular are an interesting form of media advocacy because they reflect community sentiment regarding the policy agenda and provide insight into the public debate. The authors used ethnographic context analysis to examine the techniques used by writers of 262 tobacco-related letters to the editor published in 61 newspapers across Missouri over a 2-year period when tobacco tax and smoke-free indoor air initiatives were occurring across the state. The authors found that pro–tobacco control letter writers often used didactic strategies, citing numbers and reports, to convey information and presented their training or experience as a health professional (e.g., M.D., Ph.D.) to add legitimacy to their arguments. Anti–tobacco control letter writers, in contrast, used narrative strategies to support their stance, claimed authority as a smoker or small business owner to legitimize their claims by relating to the audience, and used collectivity to capture the attention of policymakers. These results present the importance of strategic media advocacy in tobacco control. Tobacco control advocates should increase their use of narrative strategies and collectivity in order to better connect with the public and policymakers.     

Tobacco control and direct democracy in Dade County, Florida: future implications for health advocates

In 1979 and 1980 in Dade County, Florida, a small grassroots advocacy group, Group Against Smoking Pollution (GASP), attempted to enact a clean indoor air ordinance through the initiative process. The tobacco industry's successful efforts to defeat the initiatives were expensive high-tech media-centered campaigns. Even though GASP's electoral resources were extremely limited for both initiatives, GASP utilized similar media-centered tactics. This approach attempted to defeat the tobacco industry in its own venue, in spite of the tobacco industry's vastly greater resources. Nevertheless, the industry defeated these ordinances by narrow margins because of broad voter support for the initiatives before the industry started its campaigns. Health advocates will never have the resources to match the tobacco industry in expensive high-tech media-centered initiative campaigns. Rather, their power lies in the general popularity of tobacco control legislation and their ability to mobilize broad grassroots efforts combined with an adequately funded media campaign.     

Banning smoking in cars carrying children: an analytical history of a public health advocacy campaign

OBJECTIVE: Framing public health policy reform in ways that attract public and political support is a core skill of advocacy. In this paper we summarise the 12-year Australian history of advocacy for banning smoking in cars carrying children, culminating in the governments of the Australian States of South Australia and Tasmania enacting legislation. METHOD: 'Smoking in cars' was searched on the factiva.com print news media database, with returns limited to Australian newspapers published before 1 June 2007. RESULTS: The issue of smoking in cars received extensive and emotive media coverage, primarily in support of legislating a ban. Invoking the protection of vulnerable children in the debate about smoking in cars was a powerful and persuasive theme. Unlike all other advocacy for smoke-free areas, this debate was not contested by the tobacco industry or other commercial interest groups. CONCLUSIONS: Even in the absence of a co-ordinated advocacy campaign, public opinion studies on support for such legislation have been consistently strong. Communities view the protection of children as paramount and non-negotiable. IMPLICATIONS: Smoke-free cars legislation can and should be fast tracked in order to capitalise on this community support.     

"Anti-smoking data are exaggerated" versus "the data are clear and indisputable": examining letters to the editor about tobacco

Media advocacy plays a unique role in tobacco control policy development. Letters to the editor in particular are an interesting form of media advocacy because they reflect community sentiment regarding the policy agenda and provide insight into the public debate. The authors used ethnographic context analysis to examine the techniques used by writers of 262 tobacco-related letters to the editor published in 61 newspapers across Missouri over a 2-year period when tobacco tax and smoke-free indoor air initiatives were occurring across the state. The authors found that pro-tobacco control letter writers often used didactic strategies, citing numbers and reports, to convey information and presented their training or experience as a health professional (e.g., M.D., Ph.D.) to add legitimacy to their arguments. Anti-tobacco control letter writers, in contrast, used narrative strategies to support their stance, claimed authority as a smoker or small business owner to legitimize their claims by relating to the audience, and used collectivity to capture the attention of policymakers. These results present the importance of strategic media advocacy in tobacco control. Tobacco control advocates should increase their use of narrative strategies and collectivity in order to better connect with the public and policymakers.     

Tobacco industry documents from outside sources: new perspectives on industry strategies on local levels

The internal tobacco industry documents have also been used to study tobacco industry operations outside the United States. The scope of the documents on a country outside the US is decided mainly by the extent to which documents and reports were transmitted from the abroad offices of the US tobacco companies to headquarters. We explored whether the material from a private archive of a Finnish public relation consultant to Philip Morris will augment or revise the earlier reports on tobacco industry manipulation in Finland. The private records add more details to previously published reports. The new information mainly concerned implementation of the tobacco industry strategies. A general conclusion is that tobacco industry documents may not give a detailed picture of tobacco industry activities in distant markets, which would be of interest locally, even if they provide sufficient information to convey a general view of tobacco industry strategies.     

Media coverage of women's health issues: is there a bias in the reporting of an association between hormone replacement therapy and breast cancer?

Media coverage of scientific research plays a major role in shaping public opinion and influencing medical practice. When an association is controversial, such as with hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and breast cancer, it is important that a balanced picture of the scientific literature be reported. The objective of this study was to assess whether scientific publications that do and do not support an HRT/breast cancer association were cited in the media in proportions similar to those with which they appear in the scientific literature. Scientific publications reporting on the HRT/breast cancer association published from January 1, 1995, to June 30, 2000, were identified through a systematic Medline search. Media reports from newspapers, magazines, television, and radio that reported on HRT and breast cancer were retrieved from an online database. Investigators independently recorded characteristics of the scientific publications and media reports. A total of 32 scientific publications were identified: 20 (62.5%) concluded there was an increased risk of breast cancer associated with HRT (positive publications), and 12 (37.5%) concluded there was no evidence for an association (null publications). Nearly half (47%) of the scientific publications were not cited by the media. There were 203 media citations of scientific publications: 82% were of positive publications and 18% were of null publications, representing a significant excess of citations of positive publications (p < 0.01). Media coverage of this controversial issue is based on a limited sample of the scientific publications. Moreover, the excess of media citations for positive scientific publications suggests a bias against null scientific publications.     

The power of a frame: an analysis of newspaper coverage of tobacco issues--United States, 1985-1996

For more than three decades, public policy makers and public health officials have had conclusive evidence of the hazards of tobacco use, yet tobacco products remain legal, accessible, and acceptable in our society. Public health advocates have been unable to develop a consistent, coordinated message powerful enough to combat the influence of the tobacco industry. Studying the way in which the tobacco issue has been framed in the mass media over the past decade may provide important clues as to why public health efforts to overcome the tobacco industry's influence on public policy and on tobacco use have not been entirely successful. This paper describes and analyzes the predominant framing tactics used by the tobacco industry and by tobacco control advocates for the last 11 years by reviewing 179 front-page articles from the New York Times and the Washington Post during this period. We conclude that while the tobacco industry has created a central message and theme which has been used constructively and consistently over time, the tobacco control movement has not developed a consistent, powerful, and compelling message. Developing such a message may be important if the nation is to restore progress in reducing tobacco use.