STOP gets started

The global health organization Vital Strategies (VS) has welcomed Bloomberg Philanthropies’ launch of its new $20 million global, tobacco-industry watchdog, STOP (Stopping Tobacco Organizations and Products).
In a press note issued yesterday, VS said that STOP would be powered by a consortium of three leading anti-tobacco groups, ‘with Vital Strategies joining with its sister organization, the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (The Union) as a sub-grantee’.
‘STOP will use innovative research methods to expose industry attempts to derail tobacco control policies,’ it said. ‘It will also counter the industry’s efforts to hook a new generation of smokers, with a special focus on 16 emerging markets where the consortium has strong relationships with governments and civil society.’
José Luis Castro, CEO and president of VS and executive director of the Union described the Bloomberg Philanthropies’ investment as a “game-changer”. “The tobacco industry spends billions of dollars every year to drive its – often hidden – agenda to mislead consumers, journalists and policymakers. This investment will allow health advocates to bring innovation and proven strategies to expose industry wrongdoings on a global scale. Vital Strategies and The Union are honored to be a part of an effort that will bring rapid progress against the world’s leading preventable killer – tobacco use – and expose the unethical business practices that drive seven million tobacco-related deaths every year.”
VS’ note said the other organizations that had won the global competition to form the watchdog group were the Tobacco Control Research Group (TCRG) at the University of Bath and the Centre for Good Governance in Tobacco Control (GGTC). ‘Each organization has deep global and in-country experience in research, analysis, monitoring and advocacy, as well as media strategies that increase support for tobacco control policies,’ the note said.
‘STOP partners will draw from cutting-edge research, technology and media experience to cut off the tobacco industry’s influence around the world. Over the three-year term of STOP’s engagement, the group will encourage whistle blowers to report on misdeeds, publish exposé reports, employ “big data,” crowdsourcing methods, and mobile apps, to amplify and maximize STOP’s impact. Existing tools such as the University of Bath’s tobacco tactics website, and the Tobacco Atlas published by Vital Strategies and the American Cancer Society will jump-start these efforts.
‘STOP will support World Health Organization’s work to reduce tobacco use, including the implementation of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC). It will specifically challenge the industry’s efforts to influence government policy in contravention of Article 5.3 of the WHO FCTC.’