Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #118130

Robbin Derry, PhD, Kellogg School - Ford Center for Global Citizenship, Northwestern University, 2001 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208, 847-491-4976, r-derry@kellogg.northwestern.edu

Philanthropy in the tobacco industry

This presentation will discuss how the tobacco industry companies use philanthropy strategically. The philanthropic activities of Philip Morris and British American Tobacco from the 1980s to the present will be described to show how these strategies have evolved over the past 25 years. Industry document evidence will highlight how these philanthropic activities fit into the strategic goals and interests of the companies. For example, when Philip Morris needed to build an alliance among fire fighting organizations in order to reduce their public criticism of the industry for the role of cigarettes in starting residential fires, they found that by donating $50K to the National Association of State Fire Marshals for their campaign for smoke detectors for the blind, they could effectively influence how the NASFM publicly attributed the cause of fires. The degree of integration of philanthropy and strategy will be compared to the philanthropic practices of other multinational companies and analyzed in terms of conflicts of interests and public harms and benefits. The research methods used will be industry document research, and a longitudinal study of annual reports to track specific philanthropic efforts (e.g. abused women, farmers, artists) and how these are linked to contemporary strategic interests and target markets of the companies. We will examine why particular philanthropic streams are increased or decreased, and how effects of philanthropy are assessed by the companies. In addition we will consider whether philanthropy is designed to purchase public approval by positive attribution and affiliation.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant will be able to

• Describe the major philanthropic efforts of Philip Morris and British American Tobacco.
• Articulate how philanthropy and corporate strategy have been linked in the tobacco industry.
• Assess whether the linkage between philanthropy and corporate strategy in the tobacco industry is beneficial or harmful to public health, and how its effects can be seen.

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.

Recorded presentation