title: Gambling advocacy: lessons from tobacco, alcohol and junk food.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To explore the attitudes and opinions of public health experts in gambling and related unhealthy commodity industries towards the tactics used by the gambling industry to prevent reform and the advocacy responses to these tactics.
  
  
  METHODS
  In-depth interviews (30-60 minutes) with a convenience sample of 15 public health experts and stakeholders with a public health approach to gambling (n=10), or other unhealthy commodity industries (food, alcohol, tobacco, n=5).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Participants described the influences of political lobbying and donations on public policy, and industry framing of problem gambling as an issue of personal responsibility. Industry funding of, and influence over, academic research was considered to be one of the most effective industry tactics to resist reform. Participants felt there was a need to build stronger coalitions and collaborations between independent academics, and to improve the utilisation of media to more effectively shift perceptions of gambling harm away from the individual and towards the product.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Gambling industry tactics are similar to the tactics of other unhealthy commodity industries. However, advocacy initiatives to counter these tactics in gambling are less developed than in other areas. The formation of national public health coalitions, as well as a strong evidence base regarding industry tactics, will help to strengthen advocacy initiatives.
authors.affiliation: School of Health and Society, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Wollongong, New South Wales.|Australian Health Services Research Institute, Faculty of Business, University of Wollongong, New South Wales.
authors.forename: Samantha L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Thomas
authors.affiliation: School of Health and Society, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Wollongong, New South Wales.
authors.forename: Jennifer
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: David
authors.affiliation: Australian Health Services Research Institute, Faculty of Business, University of Wollongong, New South Wales.|School of Management, Operations and Marketing, Faculty of Business, University of Wollongong, New South Wales.
authors.forename: Melanie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Randle
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin University, Western Australia.
authors.forename: Mike
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Daube
authors.affiliation: School of Health and Society, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Wollongong, New South Wales.|Australian Health Services Research Institute, Faculty of Business, University of Wollongong, New South Wales.
authors.forename: Kate
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Senior
mesh_terms: D000428:Alcohol Drinking; D001294:Attitude to Health; D001315:Australia; D005502:Food; D005715:Gambling / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000523:psychology*; D006291:Health Policy; D006801:Humans; D007400:Interprofessional Relations; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008119:Lobbying; D009520:New Zealand; D011057:Politics; D011634:Public Health; D012907:Smoking; D014029:Tobacco Use Disorder
keywords: Gambling; advocacy; alcohol; food; industry tactics; public health; qualitative