The Philip Morris Nordic journalist program: Strategies, implementation and outcomes

ObjectivesTo describe media strategies for the Nordic countries outlined in internal Philip Morris documents and to evaluate their implementation and outcomes.MethodsSystematic search of internal tobacco industry documents from the databases available on the Internet and retrieval of newspaper and magazine articles from Sweden and Finland.ResultsThe Philip Morris Nordic journalist program contained a broad range of strategies to communicate company views and to counteract negative publicity, including trips for journalists, media briefings and special events. While several of these strategies were implemented, the efforts were largely unsuccessful in that the media in Sweden and Finland carried few tobacco industry friendly articles. Articles defending the tobacco industry appeared mainly in business papers. However, support of smokers’ rights’ groups and sponsoring of cultural events generated positive publicity for Philip Morris.ConclusionsDespite minor transient victories The Philip Morris Nordic journalist program was largely unsuccessful in providing the anticipated media coverage to question the health hazards of environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) and in preventing ETS regulation in the Nordic countries. The study further supports the notion that the internal corporate documents may expose the intents of the industry, but do not include enough information to evaluate implementation of industry's strategies or their outcomes.