To Court Blue-Collar Vote, Light Up

CEO himself characterized as 'longtime smoker'

(NEWSER) - Sure, cigarettes are bad for you and addictive, but they're really not that hard to quit—in the rose-colored world that belongs to Philip Morris CEO Louis Camilleri, who was responding to anti-tobacco comments at the cigarette maker's annual shareholder meeting. Camilleri was in 2009 characterized as a "longtime smoker himself," reports the AP, who had quit only once for three months when he had a cold. More»

If it will cut down on teen smoking, why wouldn't we?

(NEWSER) - Between 2005 and 2009, tobacco use in top-grossing movies declined by almost half—and that same time period also showed a notable decline in the number of high school students trying cigarettes. Coincidence? Probably not—which is why the CDC is calling for all films with tobacco use to be rated R. The MPAA’s response to this request was to point out that, since May 2007, a full three-quarters of movies depicting smoking were rated R. More»

We're smoking less because it's dumb, not because of policy: Will

(NEWSER) - President Obama might have praised Congress' tobacco bill, but for George F. Will, the new legislation gives just two muscular groups reason to celebrate: Philip Morris and "the Democratic Party's fountain of funds, the trial bar." New restrictions on cigarette advertising will help Philip Morris vault over competitors, while a provision on product liability encourages further multibillion-dollar lawsuits. It's a "contradictory and unlovely" bill, he writes, part of tobacco policy that appears to be "on balance, a success." More»

(NEWSER) - President Obama praised the passage of a bill allowing the FDA to regulate tobacco products as “a long time coming," the Hill reports. The legislation, which sailed through the House this morning, grants the agency new power to regulate tobacco ingredients and marketing. "After a decade of opposition, all of us are about to achieve victory with this bill," said Obama, a former smoker. More»

Bill will give FDA authority to regulate marketing, content of tobacco products

(NEWSER) - The Senate is expected this week to pass sweeping new legislation to regulate tobacco, reports USA Today. The bill, which may go to a vote as soon as today, gives the FDA the authority to regulate tobacco and will require larger health warnings on packets, end the use of claims like "light" and "mild" for cigarettes, and further restrict advertising. More»