Government funded activist in NY falsely claims Lorillard sent more than 5 million e-cigarette to London Olympics

[Bill Godshall]

Government funded activist in NY falsely claims Lorillard sent more than 5 million e-cigarettes to London Olympics
APOV: Tobacco in the Olympics! Who would have guessed? - The Daily News Online: Opinion

I sent this guy an e-mail requesting his source of information, but he hasn't responded.

Ironically, in Saturday's USA Today article posted on another thread, Tom Kiklas of the TVECA estimates that 5 million e-cigarettes will be sold in the entire US in 2012.

 

[VapApe]

I posted a comment I doubt if I will get a response.

I pointed out the discrepancy between his article an Tom Kiklas estimate.

 

[Bill Godshall]

Kevin Keenan, author of that op/ed, can be reached at kkeenan@gcasa.org

 

[Placebo Effect]

I commented.

From the looks of it, the basis for the claim was a press release from some e-cigarette company (not Blu) that claimed to be sending 5 million e-cigarettes to the Olympics.

However, anyone who has an 'e-cigarette' Google News alert setup knows that press releases from e-cigarette companies are NOT news, and that "puffing" is common.

 

[VapApe]

Good one

 

[Vocalek]

I commented.

From the looks of it, the basis for the claim was a press release from some e-cigarette company (not Blu) that claimed to be sending 5 million e-cigarettes to the Olympics.

However, anyone who has an 'e-cigarette' Google News alert setup knows that press releases from e-cigarette companies are NOT news, and that "puffing" is common.

What are they smoking?

 

[VapApe]

May be not enough We all know how hard withdraw can be on ones mood

 

[TennDave]

2 good comments, 2 bad comments up to this point.
It's interesting (and not surprising) that people have bought the lies...

 

[Bill Godshall]

Here is the e-mail correspondence I had with Kevin Keenan (in reverse chronology).

----- Original Message -----
From: Bill Godshall
To: Kevin J. Keenan
Sent: Wednesday, August 22, 2012 12:45 PM
Subject: Re: TVECA claims 5 million e-cigs to be sold in US in 2012

Kevin,

Smokers have a human right to truthful health risk information about different tobacco/nicotine products so they can make informed decisions to reduce their morbidity and mortality risks.

Meanwhile, government funded public health programs (and those who administer them) have an ethical duty to truthfully inform the public about the relative and comparable health risks of different tobacco product alternatives, and should never lie to or deceive the public, especially when doing so discourages smokers from reducing cigarette consumpiton and corresponding morbidity and mortality risks.

Your op/ed full of false and misleading accusations, and your response to my most recent e-mail lack integrity and ethics.

Bill


----- Original Message -----
From: Kevin J. Keenan
To: 'Bill Godshall'
Sent: Wednesday, August 22, 2012 8:53 AM
Subject: RE: TVECA claims 5 million e-cigs to be sold in US in 2012

Boo hoo…..you should cry now

Kevin J. Keenan
Program Coordinator
Smoke-Free NOW
585-815-1875
Smoke Free NOW - Batavia, NY


From: Bill Godshall [mailto:smokefree@compuserve.com]
Sent: Tuesday, August 21, 2012 6:27 PM
To: Kevin J. Keenan
Subject: Re: TVECA claims 5 million e-cigs to be sold in US in 2012

Kevin,

The press release at Electronic Cigarettes For 2012 Olympic All Carried to London was purportedly posted on behalf of a Chinese company called KIMREE (which I've never heard of), contained grammatical errors in nearly every sentence, and never mentioned Lorillard or blu cigs (as your op/ed falsely insinuated).

After I clicked on the weblink (listed on the press release) for KIMREE, my anti virus and spyware warnings went off and blocked my access to the illegible website.

In sum, that press release was bogus, and your op/ed repeated its bogus claim and also made false accusations about Lorillard and blu cigs.

I encourage you to submit a retraction/correction to the newspaper. In the future, please do some basic fact checking of claims made in cyberspace press releases (which anyone can write and post) from unknown sources, and please don't make false accusations against individuals or companies simply because you don't know, like or trust them.

On a final point, its clear to me (and the empirical evidence is increasingly documenting) that e-cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products have helped more smokers in America quit and/or sharply reduce cigarette consumption during the past 5 years than have all federal, state and local government funded anti tobacco programs combined.

Those who demonize e-cigarettes are protecting cigarette markets and threatening smoker's health and public health. So please stop doing so.

Bill Godshall
Executive Director
Smokefree Pennsylvania
1926 Monongahela Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15218
412-351-5880
smokefree@compuserve.com


----- Original Message -----

From: Kevin J. Keenan
To: 'Bill Godshall'
Sent: Tuesday, August 21, 2012 1:15 PM
Subject: RE: TVECA claims 5 million e-cigs to be sold in US in 2012

Hi Bill……….not trying to evade your question, but I find it hard to believe you’d think we’d make a claim without any justification or source. I also find it difficult to believe that you work in tobacco control and question whether the tobacco industry would do such a thing. Check out the following link if you’d like: Electronic Cigarettes For 2012 Olympic All Carried to London

Kevin J. Keenan
Program Coordinator
Smoke-Free NOW
585-815-1875
Smoke Free NOW - Batavia, NY


From: Bill Godshall [mailto:smokefree@compuserve.com]
Sent: Monday, August 20, 2012 6:02 PM
To: Kevin J. Keenan
Subject: TVECA claims 5 million e-cigs to be sold in US in 2012

Kevin,

Following up on my recent e-mail inquiring about the source of your absurdly false claim that Lorillard sent more than 5 million e-cigarettes to the London Olympics, Saturday's USA Today article cited a TVECA estimate that 5 million e-cigarettes will be sold in the entire US in 2012.
E-cigarettes: No smoke, but fiery debate

Bill Godshall
Executive Director
Smokefree Pennsylvania
1926 Monongahela Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15218
412-351-5880
smokefree@compuserve.com

 

[tommy2bad]

Wow, how bad!
Not exactly a professional response, he could have fobed you off with some promise to re evaluate the facts, instead he goes on the attack/defensive.
Must not take his job serious or your standing.

 

[Fiamma]

I wonder if he got more than 20 pieces of silver when he sold his ethical standards, or was it his soul?

 

[synthros]

Wow, so that's what we are up against? Looks like the facts and any reasonable measure of the truth are going to have their work cut out for them against such arrogance, deceitfulness and blatant disregard for anything remotely approaching honesty. I find that exchange sad and a bit depressing ;(

 

[Placebo Effect]

Wow. Usually those in tobacco control save their immature whining for private correspondence.

What does Kevin Keenan do all day? His organization's Facebook page has a whole 53 likes.

 

[TennDave]

I wonder who owns the reporting site or news publication?
A copy of the emails and responses might be good to send to him/her.

 

[VapApe]

Wow. Usually those in tobacco control save their immature whining for private correspondence.

What does Kevin Keenan do all day? His organization's Facebook page has a whole 53 likes.

And when the deadline for a piece is closing in. He just dashes something off with out checking facts.

Facts or not he still gets paid.

 

[Drew_]

Boo hoo…..you should cry now

What is this? Are we in third grade?

 

[JENerationX]

WOW...... nice response from Kevin. Has he actually graduated from school or is he in Kindergarten?