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| S P E C I A L | Tobacco Under Attack |
Ad blitz seeks public support for tobacco deal
March 11, 1998
Ad in The Wall Street Journal
Web posted at: 9:11 a.m. EST (1411 GMT)Washington (CNN) -- Four leading cigarette companies launched a $10 million advertising campaign Wednesday in hopes of educating the public on the importance of getting the tobacco settlement pending in Congress resolved, CNN has learned.
The advertising blitz is the first of a two-part, $20 million campaign to persuade lawmakers and the public that the settlement is a good deal for both the nation's health and its economy.
"The focus is to try to explain to people the rationale behind the settlement, what's involved, what the details are, and how this is going to represent a dramatic change in how tobacco will operate in the future," a source told CNN.
The ads come at a sensitive time.
A Senate committee takes up the first bill Wednesday arising from the June settlement, a second committee is convening several prominent lawmakers to solicit their views on legislation, and the industry faces a Thursday deadline for turning over 39,000 highly sensitive documents to a House committee.
The ads summarize the public health concessions the industry would make and also acknowledges the benefits to the tobacco companies.
"If the settlement contained no benefit to our industry, or threatened the very existence of our operations, we could not accept it," the ads say, noting that the industry employs "hundreds of thousands of Americans."
TV, radio ads also to run
The ads explain that the settlement would impose stringent regulation of tobacco, advertising and marketing restrictions and "massive financial obligations." It would also pay for "a massive and sustained assault against underage smoking."
The black-and-white, text-only ads will appear in major U.S. newspapers, including The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today and the Los Angeles Times.
The ads were taken out by R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., Philip Morris Cos. Inc., Brown and Williamson Tobacco Co. and Lorillard Tobacco Co.
Beginning Thursday or Friday, television ads will begin running in "33 spot markets, including New York, Los Angeles, and other major cities," a source said. A national radio campaign also will start Thursday or Friday.
The settlement negotiated last June by the leading tobacco companies and the 40 states suing them would require the tobacco industry to pay states $368.5 billion over 25 years. Money would go, in part, for campaigns against teen-age smoking, programs to help smokers quit and medical research into an array of smoking-related diseases.
The tobacco industry would receive limited liability from certain civil lawsuits, including class actions, but would have to pay $60 billion to settle pending punitive damage claims.
Individuals could still sue, although critics of the liability provisions -- by far the most contentious aspect of tobacco legislation -- maintain it would be hard for them to win against the tobacco giants.
Bills tackle tobacco issues
But a group of bipartisan senators is planning to unveil a bill this week that would take a different approach to the troublesome liability issue.
The bill would permit all lawsuits but would limit the amount the tobacco industry would have to pay out in any single year. Sources who have seen a draft say it would cost about $8 billion a year.
The bill would also raise tobacco prices by $1.50 over two years and provide strong Food and Drug Administration authority over nicotine and tobacco, and meets five White House criteria for tobacco legislation.
The Senate Labor and Human Resources Committee takes up another bill Wednesday focused on FDA authority over nicotine and tobacco. That bill has been attacked by Democrats, public health groups and the tobacco industry.
Public health groups say it does not give the FDA adequate authority over nicotine, because it transfers some FDA responsibilities to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which is a research-oriented agency, not a regulatory one.
Meanwhile, the tobacco industry, in a letter to Sen. Jim Jeffords, R-Vermont, who chairs the Senate Labor and Human Resources Committee, said the bill "represents a significant step backward in efforts to achieve comprehensive tobacco legislation."
The letter, from tobacco attorney Phil Carlton, says the bill is unconstitutional, would undermine legitimate trade secrets and allow the FDA to establish a "back-door Prohibition" of tobacco.
Reuters contributed to this report.
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Related stories:
- Tobacco industry wins reprieve - March 8, 1998
- Lawsuit: Tobacco company blew smoke with "low tar" labels - March 3, 1998
- Tobacco firms post internal documents on Internet - February 27, 1998
- Utah residents sue tobacco companies - February 16, 1998
- Flight attendants voice anger over tobacco settlement - February 6, 1998
- Witness in Minnesota tobacco suit criticizes industry - February 3, 1998
- Clinton chides tobacco manufacturers for marketing to kids - January 17, 1998
- Clinton to recommend sharing tobacco money with states - January 12, 1998
Related sites:
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- NOCALL - Tobacco Resources
- Tobacco Trials - State List
- Major legal cases and court coverage of tobacco lawsuits around the world
External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.
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