Anti-Smoking Ad Fund Snuff Out?
A nationwide ad campaign funded largely by the tobacco industry has helped cut youth smoking rates, a study by a health journal estimates. But anti-smoking advocates say money for such campaigns is drying up.
The foundation was not the only group trying to stop kids from lighting up. Some states launched efforts to curb youth smoking in the early 1990s, and others followed suit with their portions of the 1998 settlement.
However, state lawmakers are increasingly cutting into the money available for anti-smoking programs. Programs in Florida and Massachusetts that were once held up as national models saw their budgets slashed in recent years, and Mississippi's governor wants to use $20 million earmarked for an anti-tobacco group on the state Medicaid program.
Youth smoking is at a 28-year low, but campaign organizers said it might not stay that way without countering tobacco companies' consistent messages. In 2002, tobacco companies spent $12.5 billion to promote their products in the United States alone, Healton said.
By contrast, the foundation spent $58.9 million on the "truth" campaign last year, and gave another $37.8 million in grants.
"It's a David versus Goliath alchemy," Healton said. "In view of that, it's amazing we've had any impact."
The tobacco companies also pay for anti-smoking campaigns. Philip Morris USA, for example, has spent more than $600 million on youth smoking prevention efforts since 1998, including grants to schools and other groups that focus on youth development, said company spokeswoman Jennifer Golisch.
Though Golisch said the company has a "long-term commitment" to the effort, anti-smoking advocates said it's not enough to rely on cigarette makers.
"You can't rely on the tobacco industry to do this. They need children and teens to replace their dead and disabled smokers," Califano said. "Children are key to this industry."
By Hilary Roxe