Smokeless Tobacco Ads Continue To Target Youths

Main Category: Smoking / Quit Smoking
Article Date: 12 Feb 2008 - 4:00 PDT

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The Smokeless Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement (STMSA) has had a limited effect on the advertising of smokeless tobacco products to youth.

Utilizing readership data, advertising data and a media planning program, researchers looked at the level of advertising of smokeless tobacco in magazines with high youth readership and the amount of marketing reach and frequency that was generated among readers aged 12 to 17. The study found that the STMSA appeared to have had a limited effect on the advertising of smokeless tobacco products; both before and after the agreement, smokeless tobacco companies advertised in magazines with high adolescent readership. Analysis also indicated that smokeless tobacco reach among adolescents increased from 2000 to 2002.

"These findings are significant because aggressive marketing tactics can play a role in influencing smokeless tobacco use among young people," the study's authors said. [From: Under the Radar: Smokeless Tobacco Advertising in Magazines With Substantial Youth Readership. Contact Margaret A. Morrison, PhD, School of Advertising and Public Relations, College of Communication and Information, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, mmorris3@utk.edu.]

The American Journal of Public Health is the monthly journal of the American Public Health Association (APHA), the oldest organization of public health professionals in the world. APHA is a leading publisher of books and periodicals promoting sound scientific standards, action programs and public policy to enhance health. More information is available at http://www.apha.org.

American Journal of Public Health