Tobacco Documents Online

PM Appendix F Burson•Marsteller

I I I I I I i THE E.T.S. BATTLE The 1989 programme for balancing the beliefs Prepared for Philip Morris International operations in Europe and the Middle East by Burson-Marsteller/Europe ~ January 1989

Newsflow strategic overview Europe is in the grip of "bandwagon science". Serious scientific study, once confined to scientists and academics in lecture rooms and learned journals, is out on the street. It is, undoubtedly, the dream ticket for anyone with a cause. Reduced to headline-size chunks of information, selected broad scientific fact can be used to raise questions over everything from pesticides and nappy cleansers to smoking and a packet of crisps. Answers are rarely forthcoming. Not because they do not exist, but because they do not exist in a way that they can generally be understood by the people who need to know what it means for them, what they can do about it, whether they should do anything about it or even whether they should care about it. There is, without doubt, a lack of general information on ETS, the absence of which bars rational debate among people who unwittingly become the victims of emotional pressure. The overriding strategy of the Philip Morris news bureau operation, then, is to fill that gap; to take the raw material of scientific fact, opinion and commentary from across Europe and re-package it into a range of targeted communications products that articulate the "other side" of the debate. At the heart of every one of those products is the message that ETS science does not support actions such as bans, that freedom of choice is the cornerstone of any social policy; that Government should not impose solutions and that there are better solutions that balance the rights of smokers and non-smokers. Credibility for this core message is wholly dependent on source, and in addition to creating communications channels such as media events, seminars and conferences, we will need to talk in a variety of voices if what we want to say is to be heard, understood and acted upon. At times, we will speak as Philip Morris; sometimes we will need to speak as independent scientists, scientific groups and businessmen; at other times we will talk as the industry; and, finally, we will speak as the smoker.

0 M 0 M Certainly, we will need to speak out. Principally in and to the media, but also at seminars, in publications, at conferences, and in private to people and organisations with whom we will want to build relationships. And most of the things we will want to say have already been said somewhere, to someone but to little effect. it is a fact that much of the ammunition needed to make the case on inadequate science, threats to lifestyle, government intervention and alternative solutions already exists. It is in the public domain in one form or another. The news bureau operation is designed to put that information into the hands of a wider audience where it can advocate the Philip Morris position to greater effect. If information is power, then the news bureau is the generator. How it works and what it will do is outlined on the following pages.

M I I I I I I Structure o pan-European private news agency o London headquarters Staffing: - managing editor - news editor - publications editor - general writer - specialist writer Responsibilities: - source information - re-package information into range of news products - distribute products - organise pan-European media seminars - develop pan-European spokesperson training - liaise with international wire agencies - business management of operation o European control Staffing: - Bernie Robinson - Michael Horst/Paul Maglione - Don Harris/Cynthia von Maerestetten - Jim Lindheim - Paul Gillions Responsibility: - liaison with national control - approval of schedules - monthly management meetings o Network of National Correspondents: Staffing: - Burson-Marsteller/NMA/NMA's PR agency Responsibility: - develops national media lists - develops national key contacts list - monitors media coverage/commentary - monitors scientific community/commentary - arranges interviews - distributes news products - monitors specific events (symposia, etc) N G ,.. a ~ Ln ~ a

' M 0 M 0 M I I I I o Network of National Controls: Staffing: - PM/NMA Responsibility: - liaises with correspondent - monitors emerging issues - liaises with smoker groups - identifies national spokespeople - liaises with PM/Lausanne on specific requests I

F0 r 0 0 0 0 0 0 Day-to-day operations o Information Input Central newsroom gathers information from national correspondents and pan-European sources - government/politicians - scientific/academic community - media - tobacco industry - interest groups In addition, the Central Newsroom will identify and create news-hooks from relevant events within each country conferences, such as the air quality meeting in Paris in November and the Smoking At Work seminar in London in February new scientific studies/summaries, such as the ETS book due to be published in the UK in the spring new surveys the publication of industry reports, such as the PIEDA study on the implications of implementing the EEC tar yield recommendations o News Output Central newsroom staff re-writes and edits information into news products I I I I - news briefs - feature articles - position papers - issues updates - fact sheets - newsletters - speech outlines - core "letters to the editor" o News Dissemination Central newsroom staff distribute output via fax to (a) national correspondents for national use as appropriate; and (b) direct to international wire services and pan-European media as appropriate.

a oil A A 0 0 0 M 0 0 0 a a a The Central newsroom will also control a pan-European speaker bureau of scientists who will be available to national correspondents when opportunities for key media interviews/briefings or speaker platforms arise. Speaker training will be provided centrally to ensure consistency of message and level of interviewee. Central newsroom output will be approved before it is distributed to allow national correspondents to react to market conditions contemporaneously. It is esssential that local correspondents are able to adapt and use approved product as they see fit to exploit opportunities as they arise. The approval process will be - corporate approval by Newsflow European control - legal approval by Charles Lister - scientific approval, when appropriate, by Dr Helmut Gaisch The approval process will be on the "green light" principle. Unless objections are raised within a two-week period, the Agency will proceed as if the item is approved. Central newsroom staff responsibilities Managing Editor o manages Newsflow operations o liaises with PM/Lausanne o coordinates sources of information - ETS scientists/academics - regulations - Government policies - political statements - media commentary - industry bodies - EEC/WHO pronouncements - air quality professionals o maintains issues updates o maintains pan-European list of symposia, etc o establishes, maintains speaker bureau

0 -4 a News Editor 0 0 0 0 evaluates information decides respective product areas briefs writers/artists sets deadlines edits copy selects copy for distribution oversees distribution monitors progress liaises with national correspondents ~ O 0 0 ~ o 0 r I I I 4 Publications Editor o production edits newsletters o sub-edits copy o liaises with printers o develops production schedules o arranges reprints of relevant articles o writes/re-writes feature materials General writer o news briefs o fact sheets o newsletters o feature articles o letters to the editor Specialist writer o position papers o fact sheets o issues updates o letters to the editor Newsflow coordinator o administrative/secretarial support s

ft I a a 4 I I News products Feature articles A monthly series of 750/1000-word articles focussing on one topic of wide general interest. Some topics: - The Air We Breathe: invisible pollutants - Are You Sitting Comfortably?: a review of passenger comfort since 1900 - Science on the Street: a collection of scientific misunderstandings - Impolite Society: a review of-courteousness from around the world - A New Facism: reshaping personal behaviour Fact Sheets A series of single-page outlines, updated as relevant, covering - Philip Morris corporate - Philip Morris tobacco - tobacco industry by region/country - ETS - indoor air quality - bans Newspac A fortnightly pack of filler material for placement throughout the network, comprising - a series of news briefs written from previously published articles - cartoons: originated/published/PM Editorial Services in the US - summaries of industry studies/research