Rodeo May Can Chew Scoreboard

Joe Camel may not be the only tobacco industry promotional tool disappearing from public view in Idaho.

The Caldwell Night Rodeo’s Skoal-Copenhagen scoreboard also may fall by the wayside.

The traveling scoreboards at many rodeos will disappear if Congress approves legislation to curb tobacco advertising.

Although the Caldwell rodeo has a contract with Skoal-Copenhagen for this year’s August event, congressional action would deal it a blow, rodeo secretary Bobbie Farish said.

Skoal-Copenhagen brings its own scoreboards and employees to run them for rodeo events. Skoal-Copenhagen is a division of United States Tobacco Co.

“It would be a loss for the fans as well as we as a rodeo committee,” Farish said.

But the development was praised by an American Cancer Society official.

“The American Cancer Society has supported those (advertising) bans for many years,” said Steven Dickinson, vice president.

According to information released by the organization, the U.S. Surgeon General has concluded smokeless tobacco can cause nicotine addiction and cancer. In all, 78.6 percent of daily smokeless tobacco users have noncancerous and precancerous oral lesions.

Smokeless tobacco is also linked to cardiovascular disease and cancers of the esophagus, larynx and stomach, according to Oregon Research Institute data.

R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. recently pulled its Joe Camel ads.

“The tobacco industry has done all they can to try to link chewing tobacco and smoking with healthy lifestyles and events - sporting events like rodeo - when in fact, the health consequences of smoking are as contradictory to the athletic lifestyle as can be,” Dickinson said.