Scene Smoking: Cigarettes, Cinema & the Myth of Cool
Instructor’s Guide for College
Fast Facts About Tobacco and Its Use in the Media
Tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of death in the United
States, accounting for more than 440,000 deaths each year. Although major
strides have been made in reducing tobacco use among U.S. adults, rates of
tobacco use among teens remain high: in 2001, 28.5% of high school students
used some form of tobacco.1 Tobacco
use and addiction usually begin in adolescence.1,
2 Among U.S. adults who ever smoked daily, 82% tried their
first cigarette and 53% became daily smokers before 18 years of age.2,
3 The costs associated with tobacco use total more than $150
billion a year—$75.5 billion per year in medical expenses and $81.9 billion
in lost productivity.4
Although the behaviors and attitudes of family and friends are the main
influences on adolescent decisions to use tobacco, the media—films,
television, and the Internet—also influence these decisions.5-8 According
to recent studies,
- Current movie heroes are three to four times more likely to smoke than
are people in real life.5,6,9
- Young people in the United States watch an average of three movies a
week, which contain an average of five smoking episodes each, adding up to
about 15 exposures to smoking a week. Young people may be exposed to more
smoking in movies than in real life.6
- A teen whose favorite star smokes is significantly more likely to be a
smoker.8
- Approximately two-thirds of films seen today show tobacco use,
including films that are rated PG or PG-13 and intended for young
audiences.10
- Films depicting tobacco use are increasing and are reinforcing
misleading perceptions that smoking is a widespread, socially desirable,
and normal behavior, and they fail to convey the long-term consequences of
tobacco use.7
Thumbs Up! Thumbs Down!, a project of the American Lung
Association of Sacramento-Emigrant Trails in which teens reviewed the 500
top domestic box office movies between 1991 and 2001, reported the following
findings in Tobacco Use in the Movies, Annual Report Card 2001:
- Tobacco was used in 75% of all movies reviewed. Most tobacco use took
place in enclosed areas, usually around nonsmokers.
- 43% of the movies showed scenes in which tobacco use could be
interpreted as attractive, with qualities described by teens as sexy,
exciting, powerful, cool, sophisticated, rebellious, and celebratory,
whereas 27% of the movies included some type of anti-tobacco statement.
- Top-billed actors, as defined by the Internet Movie Database, lit up
in 59% of all movies reviewed.
For more information on this study, visit the following Web site:
http://www.saclung.org
Page last reviewed 02/28/2007
Page last modified 02/28/2007
= Link to a PDF document
= Link to nonfederal Web site