Cigarette Advertising Ignites Teens’ Desire to Smoke

Advertising works. And the tobacco industry knows this. So, they keep promoting the infamous Marlboro Man to young men and Virginia Slims to young women. Whether it's an ad in youth-oriented magazines, such as Sports Illustrated and Rolling Stone, or retail outlet promotions, cigarette advertising ignites teens' desire to smoke, according to a new study.

The study, which appears online and will also be published in the April issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, has relevance for the United States and other nations with partial advertising bans similar to Germany’s restrictions. The study noted the strong link between the amount of ad exposure and the level of youth response.

“Cigarettes have created a brand for every personality trait,” said study lead author Reiner Hanewinkel, Ph.D., director of the Institute for Therapy and Health Research in Kiel, Germany. “If you are looking to project independence and masculinity, think of the lonely cowboy in the Marlboro ads,” said Hanewinkel, who collaborated with the U.S.’s Dartmouth Medical School. “On the other hand, if you’re looking to project a desire for romantic relationships, and friendships are playing a role, then you will choose Lucky Strike if you are a man and Virginia Slims if you are a woman.”

As part of the 1998 state tobacco settlement, tobacco companies promised not to “take any action, directly or indirectly, to target youth.” While the tobacco industry claims its marketing is intended only to influence brand preferences of current smokers and does not play any role in youths’ decisions to start smoking, this study shows otherwise.

The 2008 survey involved 3,415 German schoolchildren, ages 10 to 17, in rural and urban areas. Students saw images with all the writing and brand logos removed of six cigarette ads and eight commercial products such as clothing, cars, candy and detergent.

With the brand information missing, researchers measured adolescents’ ad recognition by applying psychological assumptions about attention and memory. They inquired about how frequently students had viewed each ad image and asked about smoking habits and intentions. Also noted was whether a parent smoked.

“We were amazed at how often they had seen the images and could correctly recall the cigarette brand,” said study collaborator James Sargent, M.D., a professor of pediatrics at Dartmouth. “For example, 55 percent had seen the Lucky Strike image and almost one quarter correctly decoded the brand.”

Lisa Brown, re:TH!NK, Coalition Coordinator with the Winnebago County Public Health Department in Winnebago, Wis. teaches a voluntary Saturday morning monthly Drug-Free Communities “Tobacco Diversion Program” class for youth smokers that has been so effective, many of the youth work on re:TH!NK’s peer education campaigns. The youth in Winnebago are bombarded with convenience store cigarette ads.

“This is the first glance for them,” Brown said. “It’s an ‘ah ha!’ moment once they learn about how the tobacco industry’s marketing works. They feel so taken advantage of.” So, do the classes, which Brown refers to as “The Breakfast Club” curb teen smoking?

“Some kids buy into the class, but their environment tells them otherwise because it seems many of their parents smoke, and some parents smoke with their kids,” Brown said. That may change when this summer, all area workplaces, bars, and restaurants are going smoke-free, she added.