The Election Is Over. It’s Time for the Media to Start Telling the Truth About Safer Alternatives.

Alan Gor 8 May 2025

The campaign signs are coming down.

The soundbites have faded.

And now that the election is over, there’s space, finally, for a different kind of conversation.

One that could save lives.

For years, the media have followed political cues when it comes to smoking and vaping—parroting fear-based soundbites from academics, NGOs, and officials who long ago stopped listening to the science. While politicians competed to look “tough on vaping,” millions of ex-smokers were quietly saving their lives with it.

But you wouldn’t know that from the headlines.

With the political theatre on pause, it’s time for the media to do what they should: ask questions, challenge narratives, and tell the full story.

We Can’t Afford More Silence

Every year, over 8 million people die from smoking-related diseases globally. More than alcohol, drugs, or traffic deaths. Combined.

We have safer alternatives. Vaping. Nicotine pouches. Heated tobacco.

They don’t burn. They don’t produce tar. They reduce harm dramatically.

But where is the coverage?

Where are the stories of people who quit smoking through vaping?

Where is the investigation into the academics who continue to misrepresent the data, often with funding from anti-tobacco NGOs or pharma-aligned institutions?

Instead, we get breathless reports on “teen epidemics,” unfounded fear about “unknown long-term risks,” and lazy comparisons to Big Tobacco.

The Public Deserves Better

This isn’t just bad journalism, it’s dangerous.

When the media amplify panic and ignore progress, they reinforce stigma.

They discourage smokers from switching.

They validate bans that drive people to black markets.

They undermine one of the greatest public health opportunities of our generation.

The media are meant to hold power to account, not parrot its propaganda.

Now Is the Moment

With the election out of the way and the next political cycle still taking shape, journalists have a rare opportunity to step back, look at the evidence, and reconsider the story they’ve been telling.

They could talk to:

• The millions of adults who quit smoking with vaping.

• Researchers who support tobacco harm reduction are routinely ignored.

• Doctors who’ve seen their patients improve dramatically after switching.

They could investigate:

• Conflicts of interest in “public health” research.

• The role of Bloomberg funding in shaping global narratives.

• The censorship of ex-smokers’ voices on social platforms.

They could start asking:

Why are we still fighting alternatives harder than the thing that kills people?

This Is a Matter of Life and Breath

The science is there. The stories are real.

What’s missing is the coverage.

Now that the campaign ads have stopped, maybe, just maybe, the media can stop campaigning and start informing.

Because people are still smoking.

People are still dying.

And people deserve to know there are safer options.

The media ignored us during the election. Let’s see if they’re brave enough to listen now.

If you’re a journalist, the story is right in front of you. Be the one who tells it.

If you’re a vaper, don’t wait for permission—share your story, loudly.

And if you care about truth, public health, or basic human decency, keep watching.

The silence has gone on long enough.