CNBC Correspondent Speaks to Students

CNBC correspondent Brian Shactman (husband of Director of Counseling Jess Matzkin) was a guest speaker in Dean of Faculty Rachel Stone’s epidemiology class in May. Students in the class watched Brian’s documentary Cigarette Wars, which aired in March, and so enjoyed meeting the reporter in person. The CNBC website explains the concept of the documentary: “This CNBC original documentary reports on an industry that continues to thrive despite all we know about the dangers of smoking. 50 million Americans, and nearly a billion people overseas, still light up every day. And as cigarette taxes continue to skyrocket in the United States, driving the price up to as much as $14 per pack, a crime wave is booming, with black market profiteers cheating the U.S. government out of $5 billion in cigarette tax dollars each year.”

Rachel, who teaches the year-long junior/senior elective in epidemiology, notes that Blair Academy is one of the only U.S. high schools to offer a full-year course in this subject. For more information on Cigarette Wars, click here.

Posted 5/9/11

> Read About More Academic News

return to top