Advertising is one thing. Every industry will seek to polish its image and get the public to see it in a favorable light.
It's when business is confronted with the hazards of its products and processes that the misinformation gains momentum. Barbara Freese, an environmental lawyer, once cross-examined coal industry witnesses in court. That gave her an idea of just how far an industry will go to mislead regulators and the public.
She tells that story and others in the book Industrial-Strength Denial: Eight Stories of Corporations Defending the Indefensible, from the Slave Trade to Climate Change.
You think the likes of "our cigarette soothes your throat" was bad? Listen to what the author found.