Students will get an inside look into business ethics as Jeffrey Wigand, subject of the movie "The Insider" and founder of Smoke Free Kids Foundation, shares his experiences in corporate America Wednesday, Nov. 20 during the International Business Symposium.
Dubbed "the whistle-blower of the tobacco industry," Wigand is known worldwide for exposing corporate deceit and wrongdoing in America's tobacco industry.
"He had a strong ethical conflict with the tobacco industry," Todd Coppic, graduate assistant for International Association, said. "He chose to expose the problem, despite the possibilty of losing his job and changing his life forever."
Joining the upper division of the tobacco industry in the late 1980's, Wigand had hoped to create a safer cigarette for smokers around the world.
Ten years later, he was thrust into the spotlight as a hero, not because he created a safer product, but because he became the highest-ranking executive to go public with a factual account of the wrongdoings of the tobacco industry.
Wigand will next bring his message to Angelo State's ethics symposium.
"By attending the speech, you will get a first-hand experience that will reveal how to handle an ethical situation with this large of a magnitude," Coppic said. "This event offers a chance to hear at face-value how one single man wrestled a titan."
"The Insider," inspired by the Vanity Fair magazine article, "The Man Who Knew Too Much," depicts the true story of Wigand's decision to give ethics priority above all else.
The movie, starring Al Pacino, Russell Crowe, Diane Verona, Philip Baker Hall and Christopher Plummer, was released in 1999. Wigand was titled "The Insider" by Disney, the studio that released the film.
According to Coppic, the symposium will address issues relating to students now and in the future.
"The symposium is hoping to bring a global impact to ASU, as well as bringing a topic that can relate to them in their present or future careers," Coppic said.
This year's International Business Symposium focuses on the increasing importance of ethical behavior not only in corporate America, but in countries worldwide.
International Business Symposium Agenda
Dr. Jeffrey Wigand
Keynote Speaker
Wednesday, Nov. 20
9:30 - 11 a.m.
UC C.J. Davidson Conference Center
Reception following:
11 a.m. - noon
UC Tower Lobby
Ethics Workshop for Students
"What is Corporate America's Responsibilty?"
1:30 p.m.
Rassman 111
is a member of the 
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