Center for the Study of Tobacco and Society
College of Community Health Sciences | University of Alabama
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The Center for the Study of Tobacco and Society was established at the University of Alabama in 1998 when its director, Dr. Alan Blum was appointed to the endowed chair in the College of Community Health Sciences. It is an outgrowth of the tobacco archive which Dr. Blum established in the 1970’s to preserve the materials held and to serve as an international resource on tobacco issues.
The primary purpose of the Center for the Study of Tobacco and Society is to explore, investigate, compare and contrast the historical and contemporary aspects of the tobacco issue and the role and influence of tobacco in society through an interdisciplinary approach that involves research, professional education, and community outreach.
The Center for the Study of Tobacco and Society draws from a multi-disciplinary advisory committee served by representatives from a variety of colleges at The University of Alabama and by a group of ad hoc advisors from throughout the world—distinguished individuals from the fields of history, law, anthropology, museum studies, publishing, library science, public health, and medicine.
In establishing the Center for the Study of Tobacco and Society, The University of Alabama brought together this interdisciplinary team in order to better understand the dynamics and complexities of this important issue, and to serve as an international model for training, education, and research in this area.
The tobacco archive held by the Center is unique because it is the only socio-cultural resource which documents the tobacco issue from all vantage points, from public health and anti-smoking strategies to the social, agricultural, economic, and promotional aspects.
The archive’s collections include newspapers, magazines, business trade journals, annual reports, advertisements, point-of-sale displays, posters, signs, toys, video tapes, audio tapes, and more than 25,000 photographs and slides.
The archive also holds special collections, such as original press briefings donated by former U.S. Surgeon General Dr. C. Everett Koop covering efforts on tobacco problems during his tenure as Surgeon General from 1981-1989.
New Exhibition - Museum Malignancy
Corporate sponsorship of the arts was pioneered by Philip Morris as a means of diverting attention from the medical evidence of cigarette smoking’s devastating death toll…
Silk Cut: Surrealism as Subversion
Inspired by postmodern avant garde art, iconic ad campaigns to promote the brand Silk Cut sought to circumvent advertising regulations and made it the best-selling cigarette brand in the UK.
Like Father, Like Son
Looking for a great Father’s Day gift? How about giving Dad a carton of cigarettes?
The Unfiltered Truth About Smoking and Health
The American Medical Association Rewrites Tobacco History…
Big Tobacco in the Big Apple
How New York City became the Heart of the Tobacco Industry…and Anti-Smoking activism.
The Makin’s of a Nation: Tobacco & WWI
2018 marks the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I. This exhibition explores the important role tobacco played in the war, both in the battlefield trenches and on the home front. The seeds were also planted for a pandemic of smoking-caused diseases.
Smoking in the Balcony Only
Tobacco has a long history in the movies, these ads showcase classic movie star spokespeople.
Of Mice & Menthol
This exhibit highlights the connections and illustrates the history of tobacco’s relationship with minority communities…
Stamping Out Smoking
Anti-Smoking Stamps from Around the World & The Surgeon General’s Stamp Campaign
Coming Soon: Cartoonists Take Up Smoking
As the 20th century came to a close in the 1980s and 1990s many cultural institutions came under scrutiny and outright ridicule. One of these cultural touchstones that became a punching bag for the potent pens of editorial cartoonists was smoking and big tobacco…
Coming Soon: DOC Timeline
A timeline tracking Doctors Ought to Care an organization dedicated to using humor to combat tobacco advertising.
Wedded to Smoking
Smoking and weddings go together like a horse and carriage in these classic ads.
Feature: The All Tobacco Filter
In the pantheon of ideas so crazy they HAVE to work, we can assume the All Tobacco Filter in Kentucky Kings Cigarettes is one of the crazy ideas that never worked…
Merry X-Ray and a Happy New Lung
Throughout the 20th century, the season of giving was not immune to the pervasive reach of tobacco companies…
2017-2018 Annual Report
As the Center for the Study of Tobacco and Society enters its 20th year at the University of Alabama, we are proud to report that 2017-2018 has been the most productive in the Center’s history…
Through with Chew
Dr. Alan Blum is interviewed by WUVA-23 for a segment on Smokeless Tobacco
