NEWS 26

Vice Media attacked for making tobacco adverts for Philip Morris

 

Vice Media has been condemned as “irresponsible” by campaigners for using its expertise targeting young people to make ads for tobacco company Phillip Morris. Vice’s role in making content for one of the world’s largest tobacco companies, maker of cigarette brands including Marlborough, was revealed on Thursday by the Financial Times. A Vice spokesperson confirmed that the work was carried out by Edition Worldwide, a separate company owned by Vice that produces content for advertisers. The ads will not carry Vice branding and will not run on Vice properties. They won’t be shown to people in the US or UK as both countries have strict rules prohibiting tobacco advertising. However, Caroline Renzulli from the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids said the company should not be using its experience targeting young people to help the tobacco industry sell cigarettes.

• Edition was set up as a subsidiary of Vice UK called Talent Ventures last April and changed its name in January.
• Although a separate company, Matt Elek, Vice’s Europe Middle East and Africa chief executive, is listed as one of Edition’s directors

Forbes investigates after 'contributor' asks PR for £300 to write online profile

US business publisher Forbes has launched an investigation after a freelance journalist who claimed to be a contributor to its 1,800-strong digital network offered to write a company profile in return for a £300 payment from its PR agency. The journalist, who has not been named, asked for “someone to fund my time” saying they were “only paid a very small sum by Forbes which doesn’t stretch far”. The request was turned down by Rich Leigh and Company, a Gloucester- and Manchester-based PR company, which posted the email on Twitter.

• About 1,000 freelance journalists contribute to the Forbes platform, alongside a core group of full-time reporters, creating and self-publishing their content online under the Forbes banner.
• The freelance journalists are paid according to the amount of traffic they generate. A small handful have earned more than $100,000 a year but most are much smaller, typically around the $10,000 mark, the company has previously said.
• The message to the PR agency began: “Thanks for your email – I think this is an interesting company because of the reasons you share below – also the fact its model is topical and the story behind the founders sounds like an interesting journey.