Under the influence

The tobacco industry has a long and well-documented history of influencing, exploiting and misleading public health and research communities. Starting with the 1953 'Tobacco Industry Research Committee', stakeholders affiliated with the tobacco industry have strategically promoted industry interests through the funding of research programmes and public health initiatives, in order to influence research agendas, manipulate the design, methods and conduct of research, affect interpretation of findings and selectively disseminate information through publications, conferences, forums and panels. These activities have enabled the tobacco industry to promote its versions of 'sound science' and 'good epidemiology' which have been designed to weaken consensus about the harms of tobacco use and second-hand smoke exposure. Academics and public health communities have sought to raise awareness about and challenge industry interference and manipulation, and some industry-funded research organisations such as the Council for Tobacco Research and the Center for Indoor Air Research were disbanded as part of the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement in the USA due to their extensively documented role in industry efforts to defraud the public. However, as Legg et al highlight, the approach has intensified and become more sophisticated over time.