Abstract
This memo was written by Tom Hockaday of APCO Associates, a PR company employed by Philip Morris. APCO's web site states one of its corporate services is to "influence decisionmakers and shape public opinion by crafting compelling messages and recruiting effective allies." (http://www.apcoworldwide.com/content/services/index.cfm'id=8#coalition). The document lists individuals that could be approached to lend their names to pre-written, favorable-to-tobacco op-ed pieces on the subject of environmental tobacco smoke. One of the people APCO considered approaching was Peter Samuel, whose qualifications included the fact that he had "developed a book proposal to address unsubstantiated scares including alar, dioxin, DDT, ETS, asbestos and others." (Dioxin, the primary toxic component of Agent Orange, was found at Love Canal in Niagara Falls, New York and was the basis for evacuations at Times Beach, Missouri. Asbestos, a toxin and known carcinogen, causes the lung disease asbestosis and a cancer of the pleura called mesothelioma. DDT, a dangerous pesticide that can persist in the environment for up to 15 years, was banned in the United states in 1972.)
Another candidate Hockaday approached said that his organization "would not lend its name to opinion editorials written by other sources," which indicates that APCO was shopping around for prominent people to lend their names--and their organizations' names--to pro-tobacco industry op-eds that were already written.
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TO: Lance Pressi
Fii;OM. Torn, Hockaday
RE: Possible Individuals to be AiDDroached'for Wiinion. Editorials
As you, know, it has been, decided that Dr. Bonner Cohen will' not author the opinion
editorial on indoor air quality ('IAQ). Ln, ~,rcier to be uff assistance to David Laufer, we aree
attempting to identify other individuals %~. c~~a} be interestied' in authoring, the IAQ article.
We have compiled the follonving, liat of possibie authors based on our own rese,archi and
s»mRcstions fromi Tam Borelli and+ Bonner Cohcn. At this point, we need you to verify as
soon as pos- "Ic whether we sbuuld not fqrmally appraach~ any of the following individuals
regarding the possibility of' authoring, an IAQ op ed'.
Dr: Paul Cammer --~ s a Scientist and President of Business Council on I>ndoor Air
(BCIA). BCIA's membership consists of'a wide spectrum of fums with expertise in:
areas such as monitoring, controllring, improving the quality of the indoor
environment, manufacturers of chemicals, consumer products and' building materials.
Before I3f'LA, Dr. Carnmer was aan employee of the Synthetic Organic Chemical
Manuf;._,rurers Association. Prior to joining SOCMA, Dr. Cammer worked for five
years a! EPA as a toxieolbgist and project manager. Dr. Cam.mer holds a Ph.D. and
M.S. io Biochemical Toxicology from Perdue University, and a B.A. in Biological
ti:unoe5 from San ]osc State University.
L_ [` rtald Sticdman -- of the University of Denver, has written about the National
Academy of Science's crit:W;sm of EPA's computer model to estimate motor vehicle:
r'uissic,ns. hi Skedman and Gary Bishop have invented a remote sensor that
9;readh c.arbon~ monuxiiie, carbon dioxide and hy,drocarbon levels emitted from
auTc:ruot,00a ex:haust pipes. It is believed that Stedinai"s and Bishop's tailpipe
e.mission-, IVAuge could idertify the one car in ten accounting for most air polltttion at
a fraction cif the sctn and time reqired by a procedure reconnmended by EPA.
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Kenneth Chilton, -- is' the Ikputy Dircctor of'the Center for the S'tudy, of American
Business of Washington University, St. Louis, hrtissouru. He has publishedl
extensively on the issues of the impact of envimotunental regulatinn and public policy
on business.
ilt
uonn
-- i's ajourttalist and author of "The Asbestos Racket: An.
Enviro.nmentali Parable"'. He is also ~ afif'tliated with ~ the Science and Environmental
Policy Project, and has been a consultant for the congressional Office of Technology
Assessment. Bennett serves as an advisor to the Committee for a Constructive
Tomornow:
Bennett' accused the government of being slow and clumsy in spreading, the wordI of
thrrevised view('BPA revised its'views in 1990 and now says , that asbestos , should I be
scaled and left where it is, rather than removed altogether) in its 1990 asbestos report
knowni as the Green Book. A 1990 study said that the form, of asbestos known as
crysol'ite,, which i makes up tnore : than 90 percent of asbestos in U.S . buildings, was
relatively harmless. The study, coauthored by the University of Vermont pathologies
Brooke T. Mbssttlan, influenced EPA.
We had previously identified Mike Bennett, but, decided! not to approach him due to
the follo!wing, comment he made in a commentary, "Por altnost a generation, the
American, public has' been the victim of a hoax perpetuated by its' own government,
that, cancer is caused by environmentali factors, and parti+cularly, industry, and not by
personal habits primarily smoking." However, diuting a recent conwersation with,
Bonner' Cohen, he suggested Bennett as a qualitiedi and, most likely' interested,
candidate to author the LAQ article. Bennett is a personal friend of Cohen's.
P r Sarntel -- Peter Samuel is, currently free hincing pamt-time for the National
Review. Regarding the:global warming issues,, Samuel asserts that "the whole sad'
affair is a case study in the pitfalls of'trying to conduct public policy without full and
open di'scussion of fundamental principles and a fearless discussion of science andi
data. Tlie Bush, Administration, like many limp-wristed, so-called conservatives
before it, has never been prepared to speak frankly about the humbug of glo'ba1
warming, and the greenhouse effect."
"
Saanuel asserts that although pollution, is': steadily disappearing the Anlerica, the
governtnent aill not adtnit it. Therefore, Americans may still have to, pay the high
price of draconian clean air regulations. In May 1993, Samuel suggested that Bush
announce the suspension of the EPA's city smog program, which at the time fought,
urban air polhutiion with tax dollars.
Samuel has develbped a book proposal to, address unsubstantiatedi scares including
alar, dioxin, DDT,, STS, asbestos and others.
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Rionald Gots, -- is a Physician and Toxologist' in iBethesda, Matyland. He is Cbairman
of Total Indoor Eav3nonmental Quality Coalition Science Advisory Board. Gots',
responded negatively to the Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act.
Dwight Duvight R. Lex, University of Georgia econonust, wrote The I++Texi~
Bnvironmental Battlegawnd (National Center for Poliicy Analysis). Most
enviro.nrnentalists, regardless of their differences, agree that the EPA has done a poor
job (regarding outdoor air). He ! asserts that an attempt by the EPA to take over
control of air quality in buildings could cost more lives than it saves by reducing the
incomes of workers. Lee states that the EPA has imposed huge costs on the privatee
sector to eliminate trivial risks and make infinitesimal improvements in the health and
safety of Americans.
Candace C=dall -- Executive Vice President of the Science and Environmental
Policy Project (SEPP). She has published extensively on junk science issues in the
past. Crandall' was the Director of Communications for the Center for Strategic and
International' Studies before joining, SEPP. The primary focus of SEPP is too
diocument the use of scientific dat& in the development of federal environmental
policy. SEPP is an independent, non-profi research group that relies on private
fiunding. It will co-sponsor a conference with George Mason Univcrsity in May on
scientific integrity in ~ the political process, Crandall has arranged for a number of
prominent scientists to br partieipants, including Dr. Bernard Davis of Harvard
University and1 Sir William Mitchell of' Oxford University. Crandall is Dr: Fred!
Singer's wife.
Dr. Phillip Abelson~ -- is: a former editor of Science Magazine, and is currently
aff'Lliatiedl with American Association for'tbe Advancement of Science. Abelson found
problems with the BIER IV report. The EPA's statements on the carcinogenicity of
rad'on and its decay products are based in ~ large part on the BIER TV' report. Bonner
Cohen suggested thar Abelson may be interested in authoring a piece on junk science,
but may have reservations about the IAQ ~ article.
Iohn anahan -- is affiliated with the Heritage Foundation. He has asserted that
there are many basic, problems with the EPA's Science Advisory Board's "sciences."
The first problem is t!hat EPA used a 9C1'pec,cent confidence interval in its statistical
analyses. Yet the stan&4 confidence interval used by practically all' scientists,
inciuding, EPA scientists, is 95'1 percent. While lower confidence intervals
theoretically can be used, answers derived from lower confidence intervals are much
less reliable. The second problem is that the SAB conclusions may have been, derived
from incorrectly combining numerous dissimilar studies. Meta-anWysis is not an
appropriate analytical too'1 unless the studies are similarly structure+d. Yet in the ETS
assessnment,,.. there is no way for independent researchers to verify whether the
smalier studies were similarly structured.
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Dr. F. Srrnith -- of the Competitive Entetprise Institute. Pamticipated on panelI on
"Eco-Hysteria" sponsored by Conservative PAC. During, a recent' conversataon with
Smith, he indicated' that the Competitive Enterprise Institute would not lend its name
to, opinion editorials written by other sources. However, he also asserted that if wee
oould stimulate his interest in an arca the Institute would conduict, research and
prepare articles on its own.
Please Itt us know if you have questions about any of these individuals.
zluu'5
cc: EUen Merle
Tina aJ!alls
David' Iaufdr
