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Tobacco Industry Documents

As the vector for tobacco-caused disease, the tobacco industry is the single biggest obstacle to tobacco control. Just as malaria control strategies must address mosquitoes, understanding the motivations and behavior of tobacco companies is an essential component of successful tobacco control.

Fortunately for the public health community, the tobacco industry is predictable. Its activities are directed from head offices in wealthy countries and its strategies vary surprisingly little from country to country. Much can be learned by sharing information about the industry between countries and regions.

In addition, litigation in the United States and elsewhere has uncovered a treasure trove of formerly-secret internal tobacco company documents that show the contrast between public comments and private discussions. Millions of these documents are available on searchable on-online databases, and many reports have been written focusing on specific topics and geographic regions.

Other critical sources of information about tobacco companies are their websites and annual reports to shareholders. Because deceiving company shareholders carries potentially significant penalties, companies are often far more candid in their annual reports than elsewhere.

Publications:

The Tobacco Industry Documents: What do they tell about the industry in Brazil? (2007)
   Complete Document (62 pages, PDF, 1,500 KB)
   Document Cover (2.01 MB)
   Executive Summary (5 pages, PDF, 42 KB)
   Presentation of Dr. Stella Aguinaga Bialous (portuguese)

Tobacco Industry Dominating National Tobacco Policy Making in Argentina, 1996-2005 (2005)

The Tobacco Industry documents. What they are, what they tell us and how to search them. A Practical Manual (2nd edition, 2005)