Dr. Jeffrey Wigand: The Whistle Blower on the Brown and Williams Tobacco Corporation

1119 Words3 Pages

Dr. Jeffrey Wigand is one of the most famous whistle blower’s in the United States. His testimony against the Brown and Williams Tobacco Corporation (B&W) revealed unethical tactics used to delude the American public against the cancer causing additives and the addictiveness of nicotine in tobacco. Wigand was born on December 17, 1942 in New York City. He was one of five children in a strongly devout Catholic family. His early childhood was spent in the Bronx and when he was a teenager he moved to Pleasant Valley, New York. His parents were strict disciplinarians who gave little affection to their children. Little is known about his mother but his father was a mechanical engineer. Wigand had aspirations of becoming a doctor and worked part time as a scrub nurse at a local hospital. In 1960 he attended the Dutchess Community College in Poughkeepsie where he excelled in chemistry and biology and was an avid cross-country runner.
In 1961 he dropped out of college and joined the Air Force. Wigand’s first duty station was a United States military base in Misawa, Japan. He was there for 2 years and ran an operating room. During his spare time he taught English in exchange for learning Japanese and studied the martial art of judo ultimately becoming a black belt. Although he served a tour in Vietnam during 1963, the war hadn’t really started yet and so was not involved with any conflict. Finishing his enlistment of 4 years in the military, he returned home and enrolled in the State University of New York to resume his studies. While attending a judo class he met his first wife Linda, fell in love and married in 1971. His education included a B.A. in Chemistry, an M.A. in biochemistry and culminated with a Ph.D. in biochemistry in 1973.
W...

... middle of paper ...

...ince the happiness applies to millions of people and only the few people in the tobacco industry who tried to cover up the lies would be unhappy, I would say it is a morally right action. In fact, if there were to be an argument against him it would only be that he was disloyal to B&W. Wigand risked everything but stayed true to his moral compass by telling the truth to the public. I believe that Wigand did the right thing and will be remembered in history for it.

"Jeffrey Wigand." 2014. The Biography.com website. May 04 2014 http://www.biography.com/people/jeffrey-wigand-17176428.

http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/wigand-60-minutes-most-famous-whistleblower/

Works Cited

"Jeffrey Wigand." 2014. The Biography.com website. May 04 2014 http://www.biography.com/people/jeffrey-wigand-17176428.

http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/wigand-60-minutes-most-famous-whistleblower/

More about Dr. Jeffrey Wigand: The Whistle Blower on the Brown and Williams Tobacco Corporation

Open Document