Cigarette makers have increased advertising in magazines with large
teen readerships since 1998, when they agreed in a court settlement to not
target youths in their ads, according to two studies released Wednesday.
State officials who participated in the $206 billion settlement two
years ago said the findings show tobacco companies may be violating the
settlement terms.
Attorneys general from around the country are now in the "discovery"
phase of an investigation into cigarette advertising placements, according
to Washington Attorney General Christine Gregoire.
Cigarette makers said the studies were misleading. One of the studies
was by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health and the other was done
by the American Legacy Foundation, a nonprofit group funded by the settlement.
The 1998 agreement settled lawsuits against cigarette manufacturers
brought by 46 states to recover the costs of treating sick smokers. One section
of the settlement forbids tobacco companies from "targeting" persons under
18 in their advertising, marketing and promotions.
The Massachusetts study compared cigarette advertising expenditures
in magazines before and after the settlement, focusing on 19 popular magazines
with more than 15 percent of their readership between the ages of 12 and
17. Fifteen percent was the level used by the Food and Drug administration
in its efforts to regulate tobacco. Magazines in that category include
Rolling Stone, Glamour, Sports Illustrated and Motor
Trend. Examples included a Rolling Stone issue with teen-age singing
star Brittney Spears on the front cover and a full-page Marlboro ad on the
back.
In the first nine months of 1999, cigarette makers spent $119.9 million
advertising, much of it on brands most popular with young smokers, in magazines
with a significant percentage of teen readers, the study found. That is almost
$30 million more than was spent in the same magazines in the corresponding
period before the settlement, the study said. A similar study by the
American Legacy Foundation found more than 70 percent of teen-agers in 1999
had seen cigarette advertisements often enough to notice them and understand
their content. Advertisements for Marlboro, the favorite brand of young smokers,
reached 89 percent of teen-agers, the study found.
What can parents do? Discuss advertisements with your children and
write to those publications that feature cigarette advertising and encourage
them to drop such misleading messages. If you would like to send a free fax to Sports Illustrated asking them to reject tobacco advertising, go to: http://www.smokefree.org/SI
Many magazines and newspapers voluntarily refuse tobacco ads, including The New York Times, the Seattle Times, the Christian Science Monitor, the Boston Globe, Business Week, Modern Maturity, Reader's Digest, Good Housekeeping, Seventeen, New Yorker, and Sports Illustrated for Women.
Parts of this story courtesty of The Associated
Press.
