Don't Smoke

The Government of Canada, troubled by an influx of smuggled cigarettes across its borders, filed a RICO suit against RJR Tobacco in a Syracuse, NY court.  HBC’s goal was to generate as much publicity about the case as possible in an effort to put RJR on notice that the Government would not tolerate its support of smuggled cigarettes into the country and educate Canadian citizens about the costs associated with buying smuggled cigarettes (higher taxes, less services, etc.).  As a result of targeted pitch efforts, both Dateline and 60 Minutes ran feature stories about the suit.  The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Associated Press, and Reuters all ran stories favorable to the Canadian government.