Jeffrey Wigand

Jeffrey S. Wigand ( born December 17, 1942 in New York City ) was Vice - President of the Department of Research and Development of "Brown & Williamson ", a tobacco company British American Tobacco. He was responsible for the development of a supposedly " healthier " cigarette by waiving the addition of coumarin.

On February 4, 1996 Wigand came to national prominence when he was an informant at Lowell Bergman, one of the producers of the program 60 Minutes, turned. Wigand's designs according to Brown & Williamson had systematically hidden the health risks of cigarettes manufactured by them. For his remarks he and his family received anonymous death threats. The scandal was filmed in the seven -time Oscar -nominated film " The Insider" with Russell Crowe in the role of Wigand.

Life

Jeffrey Wigand grew up in the Bronx and later in Pleasant Valley on in the state of New York. After a short time in the military during the Vietnam War, he received his masters and Ph.D. at the State University of New York at Buffalo.

Before Wigand worked for Brown & Williamson, he worked for companies such as Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson. In addition, he served as general and " marketing director " worked for Union Carbide in Japan. In January 1989, he was hired by Brown & Williamson and summarily dismissed on 24 March 1993. Subsequently, he was a teacher of chemistry and Japanese at the " DuPont Manual High School " in Louisville (Kentucky). Later, he was elected " Teacher of the Year " of the state of Kentucky.

Wigand is divorced and the father of three daughters, including one from his first marriage. He now lives in Mount Pleasant, Michigan and works primarily for his non-profit organization "Smoke - Free Kids Inc. " would motivate children of all ages to a smoke free life. As an insider and an expert on tobacco consumption and production of tobacco products, he has lectured around the world.