Philip Morris among Companies with Worst Reputations July 5, 2000
News Summary
A recent poll showed that cigarette maker Philip Morris has one of the worst reputations in American business, the Newark Star-Ledger reported July 2.A poll of 10,830 people by Harris Interactive placed Philip Morris among the bottom three corporations with the worst reputations. The two others were Exxon and Kmart Corp. One respondent to the poll equated Philip Morris with the Devil.
In response, Philip Morris recently undertook a massive campaign to change people's perceptions about the company. "It's become all about image," said Thomas Russo, a partner at Gardner Russo & Gardner, a Pennsylvania-based investment firm that owns Philip Morris stock. "The impact in shifts in public perception have left an indelible mark on Philip Morris and on the whole industry."
To most Americans, Philip Morris, which owns Kraft Foods, is firmly linked to the more than 400,000 people who die each year from smoking-related illnesses. But a visit to the Philip Morris headquarters in New York paints a different picture. Philip Morris is aggressively promoting its charitable work, in particular its youth smoking-prevention program. The company houses the Whitney Museum exhibit of an Indian artist and sponsors the "Thurgood Marshall Scholars." Furthermore, Philip Morris employees are involved in ending efforts to fight hunger and combat domestic violence.
The company donates $60 million a year to charity, and spends another $100 million in advertising to inform the public about its good deeds.
In addition to the advertising campaign, the company has established a speakers' bureau where top executives go on the road to talk to PTA meetings and other group gatherings. "We were amazed at the positive response we got," said Peggy Roberts, Philip Morris' director of corporate communications. "Even the people who differed from us on a lot of issues were really amazed that we were willing to get out there and not just make presentations, but answer questions."
But Matt Myers, president of Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, is not impressed. "With their charitable donations, they're trying to divert attention away from the harm that they're doing," he said. "In essence, they're trying to buy forgiveness for the harm their product causes and their ongoing wrongful behaviors."
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