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Puff Piece

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Puff Piece

By: John Safran
Narrated by: John Safran
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About this listen

 The folks that bring you Marlboro - Philip Morris - are wheezing, slowly dying. Cigarettes are out of favour with everyone, from world governments and investors to, increasingly, smokers. So, what's their plan?
Prepare to be dazzled. Or, at the very least, befuddled.

Philip Morris has announced they will shut down as a cigarette company, and relaunch as a health enterprise, dedicated to convincing the one billion smokers of the world to quit.

The ever-curious John Safran leaves his apartment to find out what on God's green earth is going on. As he starts digging away he discovers a company up to brand new shenanigans, wangling their way into unexpected places, desperately trying to keep their tobacco business alive by brandishing a mysterious new doohickey called an IQOS.

And not only that, now they're upending language itself, changing the meaning of words. Will they slip past bans by convincing governments they don't sell 'cigarettes' but rather 'HeatSticks', and that these don't emit 'smoke' but 'aerosol'? Can John get the real story out of them without his life catching fire?

Wild, hilarious and thought-provoking, Puff Piece is a probing look into Big Tobacco and the vaping industry, and how words can be literally a matter of life and death. Business Ethics Social Sciences Workplace & Organisational Behaviour Smoking Tobacco Business Witty Funny Thought-Provoking
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As a long time fan of John Safran, I found this title to be an outstanding change of pace in terms of subject matter while still staying true to his roots. It's got Father Bob, it's got Raspberry Cordial, it's got John's classic self doubt despite his being, to my mind, well established in his credentials. While I hope he never loses that charming angst, the quality of this book challenges the validity of his concerns.

An utterly shocking piece diving deep into Philip Morris and their seeming invulnerability through manipulation of language and seeming involvement in every aspect of our society. Don't be fooled into thinking this is just a take down of why smoking is bad for you, this is about corporate conspiracy and it's happening right now (written 2021).

John's shock at the lack of media coverage of what has gone on is surely shared by us, dear listeners, by the time the book is through. Actually way before that, but definitely by the end.

I've listened to all John's books and while I've enjoyed them all, this is by far the most important. Fundamentalists and Murders in Mississippi have nothing on big tobacco.

Read by the man himself, this is the only way to really enjoy anything by John in my opinion. The man with the golden lisp. If you love John, you've already got this book - if you're new then this is a fantastic place to start.

As a side note, I weirdly found myself wanting to vape after the first hour or so of the book, and I'm not a smoker, vapist or juicy fruiter. Maybe I'll suck my thumb instead.

Safran (Lucky) Strikes Again

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Relatives of Edward Sapir may not like this book; however, Bob redeems linguistic merit where necessary. Thanks John.

Philip Morris: International Juul Thief

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I thoroughly enjoyed this, although I'm going to need to know how much that wine cost.

Unsmoke the world, but at what IQOS... t

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If John Safran wrote more books, the world would be a better place! Hilarious, serious and clever. I felt like I was in the story with John.

Witty, hilarious and intriguing

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A terrific read. John Safran self narrates his hilarious, witty and poignant book on cigarettes, vaping, the tobacco industry and Phillip Morris. This book is a deep dive on how this company bends and twists around laws to keep people hooked on tobacco. And somehow I chuckled the whole way through. Highly recommend.

Brilliant, funny, insightful

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