Exposure To Pro-Tobacco Advertising By America’s Youth Continues Despite Sweeping Restrictions.

A new research report from the American Legacy Foundation reveals that youth continue to be widely exposed to pro-tobacco messages, despite restrictions placed on the advertising and promotion of tobacco products to minors following the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement (MSA). As a result of the MSA, the industry promised not to “take any action, directly or indirectly, to target youth … in the advertising, promotion, or marketing of tobacco products(1).” The report, First Look 12, documents results from three waves of the Legacy Media Tracking Survey (LMTS) to determine trends in exposure to tobacco advertising. Findings demonstrate that while there has been a decline in awareness of pro-tobacco messages in print advertising during the past several years, 29 percent of youth ages 12-14, 36.9 percent of youth ages 15-17 and 39.9 percent of young adults ages 18-24 had seen tobacco advertisements in the past 30 days. These findings are not surprising, considering the tobacco industry spent a record $11.2 billion on marketing in 2001, a 67 percent increase from 1998 levels.

During the past five years, there has been a shift from advertising to promotions (e.g., coupons, two-for-one deals, free gifts with the purchase of cigarettes) and youth remain highly aware of print, retail and promotional item advertising. Magazine and newspaper advertisements, posters and displays in retail outlets, and promotional activities in “adult-only” establishments (bars or clubs) are still legal marketing channels for the tobacco industry. Studies have shown that youth are up to three times more receptive to tobacco advertising than adults. It is therefore understandable that 75 percent of middle school smokers and 85 percent of high school smokers prefer the three most heavily advertised brands of cigarettes — Marlboro, Camel and Newport(2). Among younger and older teens, Marlboro and Camel ads were overwhelmingly the favorites among Whites, Hispanics and Asian/Pacific Islanders. A large percentage of African American teens listed Newport advertisements as their favorite, but Camel was frequently cited as well. Young adults reported roughly the same brand preferences by racial/ethnic group.

“Public health advocates have long recognized the influence advertising and product placement has had in glamorizing smoking to young people — both in retail and in entertainment venues,” said Dr. Cheryl Healton, president and CEO of the American Legacy Foundation. “For this very reason, the MSA restricted the marketing of tobacco to American’s youth. This new data demonstrates that tobacco advertising is nonetheless reaching teens and we must do more to de-glamorize smoking in this demographic.”

An estimated 4,400 teens smoke their first cigarette every day in the U.S.(4), and 1,200 Americans lose their lives daily to tobacco-related disease.

Among young teens (ages 12-14), females are more likely than males to be aware of pro-tobacco print advertising. In addition, teens are highly aware of tobacco advertising in magazines, and youth who are receptive to these messages are more likely to begin smoking in the future. About 2,000 young people aged 12-17 began to smoke daily in 2001(5). One-third of adolescents who smoke will eventually die of a smoking-related disease(6).

As the tobacco industry has moved beyond some of the traditional advertising mediums, the Internet has emerged as a viable platform for tobacco companies to market their products without traditional regulatory limitations. Self-reported exposure to tobacco advertising on the Internet found that an average of 6.6 percent of young teens and 5.8 percent of older teens saw at least one tobacco advertisement in the past 30 days. These numbers are significantly greater than the 3.6 percent of young adults who reported exposure.

In addition to the Internet, young people are exposed to pro-tobacco messages through television and the movies. Although the tobacco companies agreed to a voluntary ban on tobacco product placements in movies in 1989, tobacco use in feature films was much higher in 2000 than in 1960(7). In 2001, more than half of all teens (56.3 percent of 12 to 14 year olds and 54.1 percent of 15 to 17 year olds) reported having seen smoking on television during the week prior to being interviewed, while fewer young adults (45.4 percent of 18-24 year olds) reported the same. Teens were more likely
to report frequent exposure to on-screen smoking portrayals than awareness of advertising in print, the Internet, retail outlets, and at bar, club, concert and festival promotions.

In the past few years, the tobacco industry has increased its promotions at bars/clubs and at concerts/festivals. This is of concern as the pro-tobacco messages intended for young adult audiences are reaching teens. As a result, it is clear that the MSA exemptions for “adult only” venues do not protect teens from exposure to cigarette advertising or promotions.
“While the industry claims its advertisements and promotions are intended for young adult audiences, it is clear that their messages are still reaching America’s teens,” said Healton. “We need to continue to counter the influence of the tobacco industry and make sure that our young people are protected from harmful tobacco imagery.”

For more information at http://www.americanlegacy.org.

(1) Master Settlement Agreement, 1998

(2) Pollay, R.W., et al. 1996. “The Last Straw? Cigarette Advertising
and Realized Market Shares among Youth and Adults.” Journal of
Marketing 60(2):1-16.

(3) Farrelly, M.C., et all. August 2001. First Look Report 7. Cigarette
Smoking among Youth: Results from the 2000 national Youth Tobacco
Survey. Washington, DC: American Legacy Foundation

(4) SAMHSA (2002). Summary Findings from the 2001 National Household
Survey on Drug Abuse: Volume II. Technical Appendices and Selected
Data Tables (Office of Applied Studies, NHSDA Series H-18; DHHS
Publication Number SMA02-3759). Rockville, MD.

(5) SAMHSA (2002). Summary Findings from the 2001 National Household
Survey on Drug Abuse: Volume II. Technical Appendices and Selected
Data Tables (Office of Applied Studies, NHSDA Series H-18; DHHS
Publication Number SMA02-3759). Rockville, MD.

(6) CDC. Projected smoking-related deaths among youth. MMWR 1996;
45:971-4.

(7) Kacirk, K., and S.A. Glantz. 2001. “Smoking in Movies in 2000
Exceeds Rates in the 1960s.” Tobacco Control 10:397-398.