Edelman Drops British American Tobacco Account

"Edelman PR Worldwide, which represents the National Dialogue on Cancer, has dropped British American Tobacco as a client in Malaysia, according to The Cancer Letter of July 25," O'Dwyer's PR reports. "Richard and Daniel Edelman had signed a pledge that the firm would not work for tobacco companies when it won the non-profit group's account last October. Edelman's Kuala Lumpur office, however, helped BAT promote 'social reporting,' issuing press releases about scholarships for children of tobacco farmers. Leslie Dach, Edelman's vice chairman, terminated that project when contacted by a reporter from TCL. 'Our policy is that we don't do work for tobacco companies through our companies anywhere in the world,' he told the publication. Dach said the Malaysian BAT work slipped through the cracks," O'Dwyer's writes.