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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion
Office on Smoking and Health
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(1-800-232-4636)
TTY: 1-888-232-6348
E-mail: tobaccoinfo@cdc.gov
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2001 Surgeon General's Report—Women and Smoking
Marketing Cigarettes to Women
Disclaimer
Highlights
- Tobacco advertising geared toward women began in the 1920s. By the
mid-1930s, cigarette advertisements targeting women were becoming so
commonplace that one advertisement for the mentholated Spud brand had
the caption "To read the advertisements these days, a fellow'd think
the pretty girls do all the smoking."
- As early as the 1920s, tobacco advertising geared toward women included
messages such as "Reach for a Lucky instead of a sweet" to establish
an association between smoking and slimness. The positioning of Lucky
Strike as an aid to weight control led to a greater than 300% increase
in sales for this brand in the first year of the advertising campaign.
- Through World War II, Chesterfield advertisements regularly featured
glamour photographs of a Chesterfield girl of the month, usually a fashion
model or a Hollywood star such as Rita Hayworth, Rosalind Russell, or
Betty Grable.
- The number of women aged 18 through 25 years who began smoking increased
significantly in the mid-1920s, the same time that the tobacco industry
mounted the Chesterfield and Lucky Strike campaigns directed at women.
The trend was most striking among women aged 18 though 21. The number
of women in this age group who began smoking tripled between 1911 and
1925 and had more than tripled again by 1939.
- In 1968, Philip Morris marketed Virginia Slims cigarettes to women
with an advertising strategy showing canny insight into the importance
of the emerging women's movement. The slogan "You've come a long way,
Baby" later gave way to "It's a woman thing" in the mid-1990s, and more
recently the "Find your voice" campaign featuring women of diverse racial
and ethnic backgrounds. The underlying message of these campaigns has
been that smoking is related to women's freedom, emancipation, and empowerment.
- Initiation rates among girls aged 14 though 17 years rapidly increased
in parallel with the combined sales of the leading women's-niche brands
(Virginia Slims, Silva Thins, and Eve) during this period.
- In 1960, about 10% of all cigarette advertisements appeared in popular
women's magazines, and by 1985, cigarette advertisements increased by
34%.
- Women have been extensively targeted in tobacco marketing. Such
marketing is dominated by themes of an association between social desirability,
independence, and smoking messages conveyed through advertisements featuring
slim, attractive, and athletic models. In 1999, expenditures for domestic
cigarette advertising and promotion was $8.24 billion—increasing 22.3
% from the $6.73 billion spent in 1998.
- Advertising is used in part to reduce women's fear of the health
risks from smoking by presenting information on nicotine and tar content
or by using positive images (e.g., models engaged in exercise or pictures
of white capped mountains against a background of clear blue skies).
- Because cigarette brands developed exclusively for women (e.g.,
Virginia Slims, Eve, Misty, and Capri) account for only 5% to 10% of
the cigarette market. Many women are also attracted to brands that appear
gender neutral or overtly targeted to males.
- Research has shown that women's magazines that accept tobacco advertising
are significantly less likely to publish articles critical of smoking
than are magazines that do not accept such advertising.
- The tobacco industry has targeted women through innovative promotional
campaigns offering discounts on common household items unrelated to
tobacco. For example, Philip Morris has offered discounts on turkeys,
milk, soft drinks, and laundry detergent with the purchase of tobacco
products.
- Cigarette brand clothing and other giveaway accessories have been
use to promote cigarettes products to women and girls.
- Virginia Slims offered a yearly engagement calendar and the V-Wear
catalog featuring clothing, jewelry, and accessories coordinated with
the themes and colors of the print advertising and product packaging.
- Capri Superslims used point-of-sale displays and value-added gifts
featuring items such as mugs and caps bearing the Capri label in colors
coordinated with the advertisement and package.
- Misty Slims offered color-coordinated items in multiple-pack containers.
The manufacturer also offered an address book, cigarette lighter, T-shirt,
and fashion booklet.
- Evidence suggests a pattern of international tobacco advertising
that associates smoking with success, similar to that seen in the United
States. This development emphasizes the enormous potential of advertising
to change social norms.
- As western-styled marketing has increased, campaigns commonly have
focused on women. For example, in 1989, the brand Yves Saint Laurent
introduced a new elegant package designed to appeal to women in Malaysia
and other Asian countries. National tobacco monopolies and companies,
such as those in Indonesia and Japan, began to copy this promotional
targeting of women.
- One of the most popular media for reaching women—particularly in
places where tobacco advertising is banned on television - is women's
magazines. Magazines can lend an air of social acceptability or stylish
image to smoking. This may be particularly important in countries where
smoking rates are low among women and where tobacco companies are attempting
to associate smoking with Western values.
- A study of 111 women's magazines in 17 European countries in 1996-1997
found that 55% of the magazines that responded accepted cigarette advertisements,
and only 4 had a policy of voluntarily refusing it. Only 31% of the
magazines had published an article of one page or more on smoking and
health in the previous 12 months. Magazines that accepted tobacco advertisements
seem less likely to give coverage to smoking and health issues.
- One of the most common advertisement themes in developed countries
is that smoking is both a passport to and a symbol of the independence
and success of the modern women.
- Events and activities popular among young people are often sponsored
by tobacco companies. Free tickets to films and to pop and rock concerts
have been given in exchange for empty cigarette packets in Hong Kong
and Taiwan. Popular U.S. female stars have allowed their names to be
associated with cigarettes in other countries.
- Many countries have banned tobacco advertising and promotion. In
1998, the European Union adopted a directive to ban most tobacco advertising
and sponsorship by July 30, 2006. Other countries have banned direct
advertising, and still others have instituted partial restraints. Such
bans are often circumvented by tobacco companies through various promotional
venues such as the creation of retail stores named after cigarette brands
or corporate sponsorship of sporting and other events. Moreover, national
bans on tobacco advertisements may be rendered ineffective by tobacco
promotion on satellite television, by cable broadcasting, or via the
Internet.
Disclaimer: Data and findings provided on this page reflect the content of
this particular Surgeon General's Report. More recent information may exist
elsewhere on the Smoking & Tobacco Use Web site (for example, in fact sheets,
frequently asked questions, or other materials that are reviewed on a regular
basis and updated accordingly).
Page last updated March 27, 2001