Daily Doc: Covington & Burling, Mar 12, 1993: More on CIAR
Daily Doc: More on CIAR
Title: No title (privileged and confidential attorney work product)
Covington & Burling, Mar 12, 1993
Bates #: 2023053717/3720
March 12, 2000
The tobacco industry successfully dodged the health issue regarding environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) by "developing data" to convince policy makers, opinion leaders, and the world media that environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) was an insignificant component of a much larger problem: indoor air pollution and poor overall ventilation. These handwritten confidential notes from the Tobacco Institute document site sum up the industry's strategy to deal with ETS:
I. The Issue : " Innocent Victim" -- a health issue...The following letter is from the Tobacco Institute's (Covington and Burling) attorney, John Rupp, to Dr. Paul Sadler of the Imperial Tobacco Company in England. Rupp is trying to explain how CIAR works, in an attempt to get Imperial Tobacco to join (and help fund) CIAR. In the letter, Rupp assures Sadler that "CIAR does not in attempt in any way to influence the substance of its grantees published reports," yet much of the rest of the letter infers exactly how the content of CIAR's studies would be pre-determined to benefit the industry: by carefully selecting the scientists who do the work, funding only those projects that the industry deems of value to the its position on ETS, and then widely disseminating the results to other scientists, policy makers and the media:
...IV. Strategies
A. IAQ [indoor air quality]---> ETS may be a problem, but if so, one minor one in a sea of indoor pollution. Ventilation is answer.
http://www.tobaccoinstitute.com/getimg.asp?DOCID=TIDN0002953/2955&PGNO=DUN00208.08&START=0&BOOL=CIAR+and+confidential&docnum=3
CITATION
Title: No title (privileged and confidential attorney work product)
From: John Rupp, attorney at Covington and Burling (Tobacco Institute's law firm)
To: Dr. Paul Sadler, Imperial Tobacco, Britain
Date: 19930312/E
Site: Philip Morris Document site http://www.pmdocs.com/
Page Count: 4
Bates No. 2023053717/3720
URL of first page (good for printing): http://www.pmdocs.com/getimg.asp?pgno=0&start=0&bool=CIAR%20and%20work%20product&docid=2023053717/3720&docnum=3
URL of entire document: http://www.pmdocs.com/getallimg.asp?DOCID=2023053717/3720
QUOTES
"...but that is quite academic if the industry has not bothered to develop data tending to undermine the case for smoking restrictions. When we have done so, we at least have had a shot at convincing decision makers that the demands made by antismokers are excessive and scientifically unsupportable....
...I am convinced that, over time, published reports of high quality research on ETS by preeminent scientists will affect views on ETS within the general scientific community. That should be of value...
...In sum, while one might wish it otherwise, the value of CIAR depends upon the industry's playing an active role in (1) identifying research projects likely to be of value and (2) working to make sure that the findings of funded research are brought to the attention of decision makers in an appropriate and timely manner. CIAR is a credible and effective vehicle for conducting research that is needed to buttress the industry's position. ...
*** CORRECTION*** - on yesterday's document I incorrectly identified the law firm Covington and Burling (C&B) as Philip Morris' law firm. C&B was the law firm of the Tobacco Institute.
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