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Big Tobacco's Ninjas?!?

That's right "ninjas."  That's Philip Morris' code name for smokers they recruit and train to be their "unofficial" media spokespeople.  They called it their "Ninja Program"  and you can find out more about it from their very own documents.

In a 1991 memo, Karen Daragan, Administrator of Media Affairs for Philip Morris USA, notes:

"Smokers can respond better than we can to these zealots' positions on smoking restrictions and excessive taxation. Basically, we can get them [smokers] to deliver our messages for us and it works beautifully because they don't represent big bad tobacco co[mpany], have more credibility [and] can relate to the public better and talk about issues that are affecting them rather than have us talk for them like we did in the past. But they can also go a step beyond. They can...get the antis reacting to them which puts the antis on the defensive for a change."

Fascinating Karen!

She continues:

"What we do is go out and find the most articulate and devoted activists. We call them our ninjas. We feed them with our most powerful information and arguments, media train them and then have our public relations agency go out and pitch stories and set up interviews for them..."

Thanks to our friends at Hawai'i's REAL program for the ninja graphic - we'll have an update on their ninja activism events soon!

Tagged:
ninja philip morris HI REAL