Thank You for Smoking Reflection

 “Why is the U.S. government the best government in the world?” There are lots of reasons I believe our democracy is the best, but others may not agree. The answer really lies in how persuasive someone can be. ”That’s the beauty of argument, if you argue correctly, you’re never wrong.” This is a stand-out quote from the movie Thank you for Smoking. 

The movie explores the ethical issues and the role of lobbyists in promoting products. Nick Naylor, the protagonist, is a lobbyist and Chief Spokesperson at Big Tobacco. He lobbies for cigarette companies, while trying to be a role model for his son Joey. He meets every week with other lobbyists from alcohol and firearms industries, calling themselves the MOD (Merchants of Death). He fights the anti-smoking campaign from Senator Ortolan Finistirre who is trying to get cigarette companies to put the skull & cross bones picture and warning on their packaging. The underlying theme questions how far are you willing to stretch your morals and ethics before it’s too far? The movie also makes you think about what is legal vs. ethical. The legal side is that Nick has the right to defend the cigarette industry because of freedoms under the First Amendment and the concept of commercial speech (any communication in advertising/marketing that promotes a product/service). On the other hand, the ethical side says that it’s wrong to encourage people to do something that causes harm or even death.

The main character Nick agrees to meet with journalist Heather Holloway. They get close and he shares inside information on his lobbying. She deceives, and exposes him in an article that she publishes. This is where ethical questions are presented.

He later receives threats, gets kidnapped, and barely survives a fatal nicotine overdose. These events, along with bringing  his son to several meetings, makes him question his life decisions. In the end, he starts his own lobbying firm “Naylor Strategic Relations” supporting companies that have morally questionable products. A quote from Nick in the movie is “there will always be people trying to tell you what to do and what to think. Think for yourself, and challenge authority.” This ties to the First Amendment and the concept of Commercial Speech.  

My first question when watching the movie was “What is a lobbyist?” I didn’t know what it was until I looked it up. Their role is to be a bridge between the business and government to get favorable policies, prevent harmful regulations, and educate lawmakers on their industries' economic impact. They’re always trying to get the best outcome for the company. I thought the movie was interesting because Naylor is quite a character to analyze. He’s defending a product that kills people, but you can’t help but be a little impressed by how he spins and flips every argument by showing how public relations and his lobbying persuade the public. 

It was very eye opening to see what goes on behind the scenes between companies and laws and regulations. Most consumers don’t know about the risks of products and all the efforts to hide potential dangers and how companies manipulate messaging.  It doesn’t seem like much has changed with controversial topics of today. 

Some products you hear about today like AI, e-cigarettes, Beats headphones, and airpods have all been in the news about potential dangers and risks. Using Beats headphones as an example, if I were a lobbyist, I would focus the product positioning not on the potential risks, but all the positives, and how they’re in compliance with any safety, or regulatory rules. A lobbyist pitch might sound something like this to promote them:

  



(This pitch was generated using ai source: gemini.google.com). 


Supporting evidence for this position is also found from well-known health agencies like the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, who claim that bluetooth headphones are safe to use because they emit extremely low levels of non-ionizing radiation. There is no explicitly established link between the non-ionizing radiation from bluetooth devices and cancer. (SOURCES: The Advocate News, Recharge Blog) Based on these articles, one would think they’re safe. 

Another example is e-cigarettes. Lots of controversy on the safety and marketing for this one. Like the movie Thank you for Smoking, it seems like e-cigarette companies look the other way from research findings on health risks of vaping. The concept of freedom of consumer choice and capitalism makes room for questionable products to be available, or even targeted to groups such as teens. Big companies see the profits and negotiate about warnings and restrictions need to be included on packaging and marketing even when science has evidence of the dangers. This article, How E-Cigarette Companies Manipulated the Government and Burned America’s Youth discusses how companies like Juul work with lobbyists to systematically undermine the federal government’s attempts to regulate e-cigarettes. “The real cost of vapes” is a counter campaign by the FDA educating teens about the dangers of vaping and providing resources to quit. Here is a medical report about Public Health Consequences of E-cigarettes 2018. Based on these, I would argue that e-cigarettes should be heavily regulated. Here is a potential health advocates pitch:

 

(This pitch was generated using ai source: gemini.google.com). 

With all of this information, in the end, you have the liberty and free choice to buy or not buy these products. The choice is yours. While I was writing this paper, this ad came on and I would’ve never paid attention to it otherwise. Take a look, they make a pretty compelling argument that hunting is a good thing. Ethical? Legal? Moral? You decide. I wonder what PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) would say? 


SOURCES: 

Links for headphone use

https://www.audibel.com/preventative-care/can-headphones-cause-hearing-loss/ https://www.recharge.com/blog/en-au/au/are-bluetooth-headphones-safe-the-science-on-radiation-health

https://www.jeffersonhealth.org/your-health/living-well/myth-or-truth-bluetooth-earbuds-and-brain-cancer-risk https://www.nola.com/entertainment_life/louisiana_health/bluetooth-headphones-and-hearing-health/article_5af1ce7f-6239-446b-a05e-aeae0fc2f4e3.html

Links for e-cigarettes 

https://www.ucs.org/resources/how-e-cigarette-companies-manipulated-government

https://truthinitiative.org/research-resources/tobacco-industry-marketing/4-marketing-tactics-e-cigarette-companies-use-target https://therealcost.betobaccofree.hhs.gov/vapes?gclsrc=aw.ds&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=23394084139&gbraid=0AAAAACtOMdJVA9BmtvzlujEM89uEXXGwG&gclid=CjwKCAjwvNfSBhBiEiwAyaGMCVB7X_jn5wiph7T0Ilb4aURSbc7YmslK9HJW2t3B6aKMmUhA6nmZqxoCDtIQAvD_BwE

https://www.nationalacademies.org/projects/HMD-BPH-16-02

Ethical Hunting 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=6QhI-AFKnAQ&ra=m


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