Tobacco Documents Online

Mayo Clinic Overview

The 1998 Minnesota settlement with the tobacco industry mandated that the companies provide public access to the millions of pages of their documents housed in two document depositories set up during the litigation. The public release of these documents is the legacy of the Minnesota trial as they have revolutionized tobacco control internationally by showing the internal workings of the cigarette manufacturers.

The Mayo Clinic tobacco document collection contains documents from these depositories. Selected documents primarily, but not exclusively, relate to the tobacco industry's misleading campaigns surrounding secondhand smoke.

The documents show that the cigarette manufacturers recognize that secondhand smoke and its health-related and public policy issues are a serious threat to its future viability. The tobacco industry also acknowledges that if smoke-free indoor air policies proliferate, smokers will consume fewer cigarettes each day, and many will stop smoking altogether. Both scenarios result in a huge financial loss for the tobacco industry. As evidenced by our own preliminary investigation, and the work of others, the documents reveal that the industry has undertaken an elaborate and aggressive campaign to thwart the dissemination of scientifically valid studies regarding the health effects of secondhand smoke and to skew public opinion regarding the health risks associated with secondhand smoke exposure. The industry employed highly sophisticated public relations techniques to deliver its messages on secondhand smoke, with the ultimate goal of marketing secondhand smoke as a “non-issue” to the public. The importance of this information cannot be underestimated for future educational, public health and regulatory initiatives.

Collection Statistics for Mayo Clinic