ON THANKSGIVING Day, 1966,

Transcription

1 Involved Americans The sixth in a series of Reader's Digest articles about "splendid efforts" of citizen volunteers who are trying to make our country a better place to live in ON THANKSGIVING Day, 1966, a 26 vear old New Yorker settled down before his television set to watch a professional football game. At 2 p.m., the network interrupted to carry a commercial which pictured handsome, rugged men confidently smoking cigarettes in an outdoor western setting. It implied that any man who wanted to be truly masculine should smoke cigarettes. To the tobacco industry, it was a routine advertisement; to John F. Banzhaf III, it was the final outrage. "Suddenly," he recalls, "I determined to do whatever I could to wipe out those evil commercials." Banzhaf, a six foot, 2oo pound bachelor and a magna-cum-laude graduate of Columbia Law School, spent his evenings for the next few months poring over law books, then formulated a novel petition to the Federal Communications Commis John F. Banzhaf III The Man Behind the Ban on Cigarette Commercials BY JAMES E. ROPER 213

2 228 MAN BEHIND THE BAN ON CIGARETTE COMMERCIALS sion. Citing the commission's "fairness doctrine," which requires broadcasters to present all sides of controversial subjects, he argued that: 1) cigarettes were controversial; 2) commercials gave only the pro cigarette view; 3) foes of cigarettes should therefore receive free air time to tell their side. To the surprise of almost everyone, the FCC, in a thunderous decision on June 2, 1967, agreed with him and ordered "significant" free air time for anti cigarette announcements. It all looked so easy. With an expenditure of only $10 for postage, Banzhaf had stunned the mammoth tobacco and broadcasting industries. But he had little time to celebrate. Legions of lawyers for tobacco and broadcasting companies petitioned the FCC to reconsider its decision. The prestigious law firm he now worked for represented a major tobacco company, and a senior partner warned him about the problems of continuing his fight. Banzhaf frantically appealed to health organizations to join the battle. None would, for a variety of reasons. "In the end," Banzhaf says, "I had to answer the petitions myself." The FCC, again agreeing with Banzhaf, reaffirmed its earlier decision. The next step for his foes would be appeal to the federal courts in jurisdictions that they deemed most favorable. To beat them to the courthouse, Banzhaf decided, the very night of the FCC affirmation, to file his own appeal, on the ground that the FCC hadn't gone far enough. He worked until 4 a.m. typing out his brief, flew to Washington and filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals. Quickly, the broadcasting companies asked the court to dismiss Banzhaf's appeal. He had only five days in which to answer, but he met the deadline with a 40 page brief and a 40 page appendix. In turn, cigarette lawyers filed their own suits in Richmond, Va. in the heart of tobacco country and other cities. It was a legal blizzard. No lone man could survive. Dispirited, Banzhaf one night telephoned Dr. Donald T. Frederickson, then director of smoking withdrawal clinics for New York City, to meet him clandestinely at Banzhaf's office at 11:30 p.m. They agreed to write to many prominent physicians concerned about smoking, asking for money and the use of their names to set up a tax exempt organization. Action on Smoking and Health (ASH). Shortly, they had enough backers, including Dr. Paul Dudley White, the famed heart specialist, to go into business. Banzhaf quit his law firm and opened a one room office provided by a small anti cancer organization, Cancerco. With $8000 in contributions, he hired legal assistance and helped turn back the cigarette forces in the Court of Appeals, and persuaded the U.S. Supreme Court not to review the case. The U.S. Public Health Service and numerous health organizations prepared devastating TV and radio spot ads condemning cigarettes.

3 Anything that tastes that ba has gotta work. Arid believe m s! It kills germs ' cause bad breath, use it twice a day. I beard any complaints yet Warner Lambert Company, Listerine*

4 2/6 CIGARETTE COMMERCIALS Then Banzhaf had patients at smoking withdrawal clinics monitor broadcasting stations. On the basis of their reports, ASH filed complaints with the FCC more than had been filed by any other organization in history charging that many stations were skimping on the number of "anti commercials," or running them at oft hours. Eventually, all the networks and hundreds of individual stations carried their share of the spots, many in prime time. Result: although tobacco companies were spending more than $200 million a year for broadcast advertising, cigarette consumption declined. All of this helped embolden Congress to legislate against cigarette commercials. Senators Warren G. Magnuson of Washington and Frank E. Moss of Utah, two longterm smoking foes, were able to persuade Congress to outlaw all cigarette advertising on TV and radio, effective January 2,1971 four years, one month and nine days after Banzhaf became enraged at the Thanksgiving Day commercial. But Banzhaf feels that the fight against dangerous or disagreeable aspects of life in America is only beginning. Besides his work with ASH, he has become a law professor at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., "to be near the action." And he has organized his students into 24 teams to propose, investigate or prosecute a flood of cases for federal regulatory agencies. He has asked the Federal Avia Reynold s Wrap Preezer to Table Cookery It's the no-thaw way! Keep a batch of %" burgers in your freezer, individually wrapped in Heavy Duty Reynolds Wrap. (Double fold foil across top, fold ends tight against sides.) Freeze at 0. Cook 'em time you want 'em straight from the 1. When ready to cook, place frozen foil wrapped patties in ungreased heavyweight aluminum skillet. Cook over medium high heat 8 to 10 miniitps 2. Turn, slit foil across top and peel back. For medium, cook 9 to 10 minutes more. Reynolds Wrap saves the juices and flavor. Fabulous! And no splatter, easier clean up. Heavy Duty Reynolds Wrap is a strong sheet of aluminum foil that keeps moisture in, keeps air out. Keeps everything you freeze fresh and flavorful. Reynolds Wrap. Oven Tempered for Flexible Strength.

5 231 MAN BEHIND THE BAN ON CIGARETTE COMMERCIALS tion Administration to require separate smoking and non smoking areas on commercial aircraft, and many airlines have already followed through. He's also starting a campaign to segregate smokers in restaurants and government offices. "We are not unnecessarily infringing upon anybody's smoking pleasure," he says. "What we are doing is upholding the non smoker's right to be free of the danger and nuisance of other people's tobacco." Some of Banzhaf's students plan to ask the Federal Trade Commission to stop the use of regular cigarette trademarks on candy cigarettes sold to children. Others are compiling medical evidence to try to convince the Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs that for some people tobacco is a physiologically addictive drug like heroin. Banzhaf also now has student groups working outside the cigarette field under pixyish acronyms. SOUP (Students Opposing Unfair Practices), in a Federal Trade Commission case involving an allegedly deceptive soup commercial, is seeking to establish the important principle that the FTC can order a company to advertise that a previous ad was misleading. The FTC is trying to invoke this SOUP principle against gasoline and soft drink companies. LABEL (Law Students for Buyer Education in Labeling) and Extra Thick, Man Size Freezer to

6 218 MAN BEHIND THE BAN ON CIGARETTE COMMERCIALS FATS (Fight to Advertise the Truth About Saturates) seek better labeling to disclose the caffeine content of soft drinks and the saturated fat content of prepared foods, SMASH (Students Mobilizing on Automobile Safety Hazards) is helping the National Highway Safety Bureau develop standards for safer bumpers. Banzhaf feels that his students are getting valuable legal experience and contributing to the improvement of American life. "Young people who want to meet today's challenges don't have to strike, demonstrate or riot," he says. "This legal path to social reform is wide open. There are a lot of things left to do." TRANSATLANTIC business telephone callers have come up with a good new idea. They record their messages on a tape recorder, accelerate it, and then play it over the phone. The recipient at the other end records into his tape recorder, and afterward plays it at reduced speed. The cost of the calls is thus cut to a minimum. Straits Times, Kuala Lumpur LONDON policemen are learning something new the art of guessing a woman's age. In minor traffic offenses, bobbies guess how old a woman driver is rather than cause embarrassment by asking her. CP MAILMEN in the United States have difficulty with dogs, but things could be worse. Egyptian mailmen complain of being nipped by camels, mailmen in Brazil have been bitten by jaguars, and a Tongan Island mailman was killed by a shark. National Geographic News Bulletin Notes From All Over REMEMBER when women athletes used to be considered oddball behemoths, Big Berthas, Powerful Katinkas? That's in the past now, and the future is making sure of it. At the Munich Olympics in 1972 "cosmetic cabins" will be on hand near the victory stands in the various venues. Women distance runners can renew their makeup before appearing for their medals. Women swimmers can do something with their wet and tangled hair. And the cabins are not just for the women. All participants can take a couple of minutes to make sure they look all right before going on TV. It is expected that those who present the medals will freshen up first, too. Sports Illustrated WHILE traveling through Canada, a California couple discovered a convenient feature in front of the legislative building in Winnipeg. Afterward they wrote this letter to the government: "Want to thank you for your thoughtfulness in providing, in front of your Capitol Building, those electrical convenience outlets for plugging in electric shavers. My wife also found them handy for making toast, after visiting your lovely building. But I might suggest a sign to this effect as some less alert visitors might miss those sohandy outlets, what with the little protective lid over them, you know." Those "electrical convenience outlets," unknown in California, are used in Winnipeg for plugging in cars in winter! Manitoba Government Features Service