CASAA is often contacted by people who are going to be interviewed by a local newspaper or television station. Here, for handy reference is a list of the "homework" we assign:
CASAA would be happy to work with you. We suggest that you contact the journalist to find out what his or her approach is going to be. What gave him or her the idea to do a story? How does this story fit in with other stories s/he is doing or has done? Bottom line is that journalists usually have some kind of preconceived idea about where they are going with a story. What kind of questions might be asked?
If the reporter does not know about the concept of tobacco Harm Reduction, you might need to provide that background. E-cigarettes are just one of the tools that can be used to reduce the harm caused by smoking. Modern smokeless tobacco products such as snus and dissolvable tobacco products (orbs, strips, sticks, etc.) are another tool, as is long-term use of pharmaceutical nicotine (patches, gum, lozenges, etc.) The methodology employed in Tobacco Harm Reduction is to switch to long-term replacement of nicotine from a safer source than inhaling smoke.
See these pages about Tobacco Harm Reduction:
Understanding Harm Reduction
Smoking Alternatives
Nicotine Effects
Also, the FAQs on the Tobacco Harm Reduction organizations site. (see links on the left side of the Home page): Tobaccoharmreduction.org
Researchers who at the time worked at the University of Alberta conducted a survey of e-cigarette users and there is some extremely useful demographic information on who uses e-cigarettes and for what purposes. It is posted online here: http://tobaccoharmreduction.org/wpapers/011v1.pdf
As far as specific facts about e-cigarettes, you might download the following documents from the CASAA web site:
Medical Infograph: http://casaa.org/uploads/CASAA_Medical_infograph.pdf
Tri-Fold Brochure, The Facts About Electronic Cigarettes: http://casaa.org/uploads/CASAA-Ecig-TriFold-Brochure.pdf
Myths about E-cigarettes: http://casaa.org/uploads/8_Biggest_Electronic_Cigarette_Myths.pdf
E-Cigarette Fact Sheet 1 page Handout: http://casaa.org/uploads/CASAA_FAQs.pdf
Legislative Packet - http://casaa.org/uploads/CASAA_Legislative_Packet_Regarding_Indoor_Bans_Web.pdf
The most important thing you can share with the reporter is your own personal experience. How long did you smoke? Did you experience any ill effects from smoking? What happened after you switched to using an e-cigarette?
The reporter might be looking into the legal aspects of e-cigarettes in Canada and/or the U.S. Are you familiar with the court case that is being chronicled on ECF in the thread http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/legislation-news/92186-se-njoy-vs-fda-discussion.html? The really short version of the story is in this 2-response thread: http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/fo...ut-why-do-we-need-watch-how-get-up-speed.html
Health Canada recommended against the use of e-cigarettes shortly after the FDA held its infamous press conference in July 2009, claiming that there are carcinogens and toxins in e-cigarettes. The FDA report is debunked in several of the CASAA documents that are cited above. Several foreign countries banned the sale of e-cigarettes, citing the FDA's "health concerns." Ironically, the FDA has been unable to ban sales in the US!
Contact CASAA if you have specific questions or concerns not addressed in the above documentation. Good luck with your interview!
P.S. When the interview is published, please post a link in this forum.
CASAA would be happy to work with you. We suggest that you contact the journalist to find out what his or her approach is going to be. What gave him or her the idea to do a story? How does this story fit in with other stories s/he is doing or has done? Bottom line is that journalists usually have some kind of preconceived idea about where they are going with a story. What kind of questions might be asked?
If the reporter does not know about the concept of tobacco Harm Reduction, you might need to provide that background. E-cigarettes are just one of the tools that can be used to reduce the harm caused by smoking. Modern smokeless tobacco products such as snus and dissolvable tobacco products (orbs, strips, sticks, etc.) are another tool, as is long-term use of pharmaceutical nicotine (patches, gum, lozenges, etc.) The methodology employed in Tobacco Harm Reduction is to switch to long-term replacement of nicotine from a safer source than inhaling smoke.
See these pages about Tobacco Harm Reduction:
Understanding Harm Reduction
Smoking Alternatives
Nicotine Effects
Also, the FAQs on the Tobacco Harm Reduction organizations site. (see links on the left side of the Home page): Tobaccoharmreduction.org
Researchers who at the time worked at the University of Alberta conducted a survey of e-cigarette users and there is some extremely useful demographic information on who uses e-cigarettes and for what purposes. It is posted online here: http://tobaccoharmreduction.org/wpapers/011v1.pdf
As far as specific facts about e-cigarettes, you might download the following documents from the CASAA web site:
Medical Infograph: http://casaa.org/uploads/CASAA_Medical_infograph.pdf
Tri-Fold Brochure, The Facts About Electronic Cigarettes: http://casaa.org/uploads/CASAA-Ecig-TriFold-Brochure.pdf
Myths about E-cigarettes: http://casaa.org/uploads/8_Biggest_Electronic_Cigarette_Myths.pdf
E-Cigarette Fact Sheet 1 page Handout: http://casaa.org/uploads/CASAA_FAQs.pdf
Legislative Packet - http://casaa.org/uploads/CASAA_Legislative_Packet_Regarding_Indoor_Bans_Web.pdf
The most important thing you can share with the reporter is your own personal experience. How long did you smoke? Did you experience any ill effects from smoking? What happened after you switched to using an e-cigarette?
The reporter might be looking into the legal aspects of e-cigarettes in Canada and/or the U.S. Are you familiar with the court case that is being chronicled on ECF in the thread http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/legislation-news/92186-se-njoy-vs-fda-discussion.html? The really short version of the story is in this 2-response thread: http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/fo...ut-why-do-we-need-watch-how-get-up-speed.html
Health Canada recommended against the use of e-cigarettes shortly after the FDA held its infamous press conference in July 2009, claiming that there are carcinogens and toxins in e-cigarettes. The FDA report is debunked in several of the CASAA documents that are cited above. Several foreign countries banned the sale of e-cigarettes, citing the FDA's "health concerns." Ironically, the FDA has been unable to ban sales in the US!
Contact CASAA if you have specific questions or concerns not addressed in the above documentation. Good luck with your interview!
P.S. When the interview is published, please post a link in this forum.
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