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WARSAW: There are some people spreading disinformation rather than misinformation on tobacco harm reduction and majority of the bad media coverage is simply regurgitated. 

Will Godfrey, Founder & Editor-in-Chief of Filter magazine, speaking at the Panel Discussion #6 on “Media, misinformation and public health” at the 12th Global Forum on Nicotine (GFN 2025) said:

“It’s based on ignorance, on credulity towards public health institutions that should be trustworthy, towards, in some cases, prestigious academic organisations and flawed and often unpublished studies.”

He said very few journalists are tobacco harm reduction beat journalists. They’re expected to cover multiple subjects quickly, which doesn’t lend itself to depth. 

“In some cases, they’re churning out four or five stories a day, so seeing them trust what some academics tell them, or what the World Health Organization says, is sad and disappointing, but not that surprising,” he said.

Also, most people don’t read studies and aren’t very interested in data. He said consumer stories are quite easy for journalists to write, compared to more deeply reported or data driven stories. 

“Harm reduction as a concept, as a movement, has always been a bottom-up phenomenon, and that’s why consumer voices are so important. 

“For example, mental health, when we know that smoking rates are extremely high in that population, or homelessness and also broader drug policy reform and harm reduction, which is why it’s so great  to see increasing numbers of people from a drug harm reduction background engaging in this area,” Will said.

Konstantinos Farsalinos, a physician at the Universities of Patras and West Attica in Greece, said a study of more than 1,000 US physicians found 83 per cent strongly agreed with the statement nicotine causes cardiovascular disease, and 80.5 per cent strongly agreed with the statement that nicotine causes cancer. 

“You understand that this level of misinformation and misperception is not only widely present in society and among non-experts, but also among experts. And experts have been the source of information for consumers,” he said. 

He believed supporters of tobacco harm reduction and those who have been involved in research haven’t made any consistent effort to educate consumers. 

According to Global Medical Safety Officer Hugo Tan there are 1.3 billion smokers, and annually, there are 8 million deaths due to complications related to smoking. 

Covid-19 amounted to about 7 million deaths. If Covid-19 was a pandemic, if it was a public health crisis, then what about the 8 million deaths from smoking?

“Not too long ago, when I was in medical school, we were taught about the harmful effects of smoking, but we learned nothing about the science about alternative nicotine products. How we teach medical students needs to change,” he said.

Fiona Patten, a politician and activist from Australia, said many journalists write stories that contain misinformation.

He said really knowledgeable health reporters are frightened of the Cancer Council and Health Ministry. 

They are frightened that if they contradict the health department, if they contradict the cancer councils, then a great wrath will come upon them. 

“Even reporters, if they contradict the Minister, if they try to correct or ask difficult questions, they are no longer invited to have interviews with the Minister.”

Lynne Dawkins, Director of Dawkins Analytics Ltd, said: “We’re now seeing evidence of people actually switching from vaping to smoking because they think that smoking is less harmful.”

According to Prof. David Sweanor, two months ago, Goldman Sachs came out with a report following up on the very rapid decline of cigarette smoking in the United States and the uptake of alternatives. 

And Goldman Sachs says that alternative products, non-combustion products, are going to overtake the sales of cigarettes in the United States of America this year. 

“That’s amazing, and it’s very much to the credit of those of you are sitting here, and others. We’re moving. Consumers are moving. It doesn’t matter what other people are saying, and we’re seeing this in country after country,” he enthused.

Science today offers tangible tools to reduce smoking-related harm, but international alliances, updated regulations, and an integrated vision across health, education, and research are needed.

While policymakers and international health officials gather to shape the future of tobacco and nicotine regulation, one perspective remains glaringly absent: the voice of consumers.

The exclusion of those most affected at the past World Conference on Tobacco Control, namely adult smokers, vapers, and users of safer alternatives, is not just an oversight but a fundamental flaw in global tobacco control.  

Yet the real problem persists: consumer voices are ignored while prohibitionist policies, often driven by powerful interests like Michael Bloomberg and the WHO, dominate the agenda.

This exclusion is especially dangerous as the world approaches a pivotal moment for tobacco policy. In November 2025, governments will gather in Geneva for COP11 to negotiate the future of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC).

This process has long sidelined consumers and rejected harm reduction strategies.