Free Essays,College Free Essays,Free College Essays at Anti Essays

The smoking of cigarettes is said to be the most over-practiced addiction in the world. According to the Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the number of teenage smokers constitute nearly 40 percent of all teenagers. This percentage continues to increase despite the fact the oral and medical complications that arise from smoking are publicly exposed and taught in school. Why is this so? Perhaps it is a result from peer pressure? Could it be an emotional escape for teenagers dealing with difficult situations? Maybe it is fun and exciting for a teenager to rebel and start smoking, but whatever the reason, the advertisement of tobacco products definitely play a role to influence teenagers to start smoking.

Tobacco products in the United States are advertised more than automobiles are. It is also the only legal product that causes death and disability when used as intended. Tobacco companies in 1993 spent more than $6 billion on promotions and advertising, and in that $6 billion, $756 million was spent on novelty items such as tee shirts, lighters, hats, free samples of tobacco, and product catalogs. In a 1992 Gallop Poll, 74 percent of the American public believed that tobacco advertisements were meant to encourage children to smoke. The tobacco companies are persistent in saying that their advertisements are not meant for anyone under the age of 21. However, the largest increase in teen smoking was in 1988, the year Joe Camel was introduced nationally. Tobacco companies have also created things like the Philip Morris Marlboro Adventure team, which depicts adventures being no fun without cigarettes. A national survey found that about 86 percent of teen smokers who bought their own cigarettes preferred Marlboro or Newport cigarettes; Marlboro and Newport cigarettes are the most heavily advertised brands of cigarettes. Tobacco companies have a reputation for misleading and often times beguiling...