Coming to Terms with Industry-Sponsored Public Policy Research: A Case Study Involving Controversial Issues in Tobacco Advertising

Marketing academics have long been critical of research appearing in non-business journals as was the case with Fischer et al. (1991), claiming that the submission review system for that vehicle was not prepared to adequately assess the merits of research. This article proposes that industry-sponsored research that directly addresses business practice and public policy calls, for a variety of reasons, for special reporting, review, and presentation considerations when considered by any academic journal, include those in business generally and marketing specifically. Using a careful analysis a recent article appearing in a pre-eminent marketing journal, it can be demonstrated that new policies are called for that will more effectively preserve the integrity of all parties involved with generation, dissemination, and consumption of public policy related research in marketing