Why They Are Needed?

From www.tobaccofreecenter.org

Tobacco use kills about five million people in the world each year, a rate that will continue to rise if current trends continue. It is estimated that in nine years, tobacco use will kill 50% more people than HIV/AIDS and will account for 10% of all deaths worldwide. The aggressive and deliberate actions taken by tobacco companies to expand their market around the world no doubt contribute to the tremendous toll of tobacco worldwide.

Tobacco Industry Marketing and Promotion Practices
The tobacco industry spends billions of dollars internationally to market and promote its products. According to the World Health Organization, “Tobacco addiction is a communicated disease -- communicated through advertising, sports, marketing and sponsorship.” Tobacco industry documents reveal that tobacco companies have carefully studied the smoking habits and tastes of potential customers, many of whom are children, and used this research in the development of new products and marketing campaigns. Unfortunately, the industry’s marketing and promotion campaigns have been extremely successful in luring new customers and maintaining existing customers.

Tobacco companies devote significant resources to encourage tobacco use all over the world and use every medium possible, from magazine and billboard advertising, to event sponsorships, movie appearances, brand merchandising, “brand stretching” (placing tobacco brand names on unrelated products, such as clothing, to remind the consumer--consciously or subconsciously-- of tobacco products), and product discounts or give-ways to raise awareness of their products and attract new smokers. In addition, tobacco companies engage in a variety of public relations efforts to promote their industry and their image.
Tobacco companies do not rely solely on marketing strategies to maintain their image and protect their interests. They also seek to influence policymaking and actively fight against efforts that might curb their practices. Tobacco companies undermine control efforts proven to be effective, actively lobby for or against legislation, hold fundraisers or conferences to support or educate on certain issues, and form “front” organizations to hide their connections to pro-tobacco support.

Although tobacco industry advertising has been constrained in various countries, remnants of their earlier marketing efforts exist and have resulted in an environment in many countries that is accepting of tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke, while still not enough people know the true harms of both.

Public Education Campaigns Counter the Tobacco Industry’s Marketing and Promotion Efforts

The aggressive targeting by the tobacco industry demands equally aggressive public education campaigns to prevent smoking initiation among youth (when most smokers start), to encourage smokers to quit, and to change the social context of tobacco use so that pro-tobacco messages are no longer dominant. Well-designed public education campaigns that are integrated with community and school-based programs and assistance for smokers who want to quit can successfully counter tobacco industry marketing. Specifically, public education campaigns:

• Discourage youth from starting to smoke. Public education campaigns provide effective counter messages to the tobacco industry’s ever-present marketing and promotional efforts. Tobacco companies’ sophisticated marketing campaigns glamorize smoking, making it look youthful and attractive. Public education campaigns counter the industry’s misleading messages and can effectively alter the industry’s carefully crafted positive image of tobacco use.
• Encourage and motivate smokers to quit. Public education campaigns can include messages about the health consequences of tobacco use and the harms of secondhand smoke. These messages should be hard hitting and elicit emotions such as anger, fear, loss and sadness to prompt smokers to try to quit or not smoke around others. Evidence suggests that public education campaigns can have a greater impact on cessation than other interventions due to their ability to reach a large number of smokers.
• Educate smokers about how to quit. Public education campaigns can include “how to quit” messages that are supportive, positive and provide smokers with quitting assistance, such as a phone number to call to receive counseling services or information, or a website with quitting resources.
• Educate the public about tobacco industry actions. Public education campaigns that expose tobacco industry marketing and product manipulation tactics can change community attitudes and beliefs about the tobacco industry and about tobacco in general and can lead to reductions in smoking.
• Educate the public about effective policy solutions. Public education campaigns can create public support for policy efforts aimed at preventing smoking initiation, and helping smokers to quit and reducing nonsmokers’ exposure to secondhand smoke.
Public education campaigns change the image associated with tobacco and tobacco use and provide information about how to address the problems associated with tobacco use. They achieve this by building awareness and knowledge and by changing key attitudes and beliefs which ultimately lead to changes in behavior.
Public Education Campaigns Are Effective

 Effective public education campaigns are a vital component of any comprehensive tobacco control program because they help prevent smoking initiation among youth (when most smokers start), encourage smokers to quit and promote available quitting resources, reduce the acceptability of exposure to secondhand smoke, and change the social context of tobacco use so that pro-tobacco messages are no longer dominant. Furthermore, public education campaigns can help change the overall environment, such that citizens become more supportive of tobacco control policies and other interventions. Public education campaigns achieve these impacts by building awareness and knowledge, changing attitudes and beliefs, and contributing to behavior changes.
Public education campaigns must use multiple channels to reach the target audience(s) with evidence-based messages. Evidence suggests that mass media campaigns can have a greater impact on cessation than other methods due to their ability to reach a large number of smokers. To reach key audiences effectively, a campaign should consist of:

• A variety of paid media efforts such as television, radio, print, Internet, cinema, billboards and new electronic media;
• Public relations efforts, including media outreach to generate news coverage of tobacco issues;
• Outreach to, and involvement of, community organizations such as schools, religious institutions and civic organizations; and
• Collateral materials, such as t-shirts, buttons, brochures and posters that can engage the target audience at events, encourage interaction, and have a lasting presence. These materials can be an important part of a public education campaign if developed with strategic messaging and distributed broadly.

Characteristics of Effective Mass Media Campaigns

Available research and experience shows that a public education campaign should include the following characteristics to be most successful.
• Mass media campaigns need staying power -- ads must be seen and heard often enough to be able to change beliefs, attitudes and behaviors. Building awareness of a campaign, an ad or a message is not sufficient. High frequency/long duration campaigns have higher rates of effectiveness than low frequency/short duration campaigns. According to a review of smoking cessation media campaigns from around the world conducted by WHO and CDC, media weight (reach and frequency) and campaign duration are crucial elements to insure a continued decline in smoking rates.

• The campaign should include a variety of refreshed and targeted messages to motivate different people to try to quit at different times.

• Effective campaigns typically incorporate a variety of paid media, public relations, special events and promotions in a coordinated effort integrated with school and community-based programs, as well as the other elements of a comprehensive tobacco use reduction plan. Multiple components can increase the impact of a campaign; ideally paid television advertising would always be part of the campaign plan, since evidence to date clearly indicates the key role that it plays in a campaign’s results.
• Campaigns should reflect lessons learned internationally about effective messages and creative strategies, and campaigns must be planned and executed completely independent of any tobacco industry influence. International campaign reviews can provide direction based on lessons learned from previous campaigns.
• Campaigns must be grounded in rigorous and state-of-the art research on effectiveness. Formative research and evaluation, process and outcome evaluation should be combined to ensure the greatest likelihood that the campaign will effectively build awareness and knowledge, and change attitudes and behaviors as desired.