"No lie was too big to tell, no bit of pseudo-science too ridiculous to pass off as legitimate. Parents, if you have teenagers considering a career in p.r., have them read this first." Bryan Burroughs, author of Barbarians at the Gates, reviews Allan Brandt's book about the history of Big Tobacco:
The modern cigarette, Brandt reminds us, was born in the late 19th century but for the longest time remained the industry's neglected stepchild. Chewing tobacco (also known by its technical name, God This Stuff Is Gross) and even pipe tobacco sold better. Hand-rolled cigarettes cost too much to make and sold for too little to justify greater investment... But then came rolling machines. For the first time, cigarettes could be made for pennies apiece, and at that point no one much cared about the naysayers. (Did you know that 16 states briefly outlawed cigarettes in the 1920s..? )
Probably at this juncture in the story, we should mention "Tipping Point" by Gladwell, is it? He doesn't address Big T. but he explains how movements for and against things, gain big MO. So there is hope. Tobacco has seen its zenith and now the sun is surely setting, slowly slowly, but irreversably, Thank God.
Posted by: Edo River | Sunday, March 18, 2007 at 01:25 PM