Truth or Lie?

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In 2008, 21% of adults in America aged 18 and older were current cigarette smokers while another 21% had been former smokers and 58% had smoked less than 100 cigarettes in their life, according to a CDC survey (Pleis 10). These statistics result in almost half of the United States population being smokers at one point in their life. The tobacco industry is huge in order to provide cigarettes to the quarter of Americans that currently smoke. The statistics that resulted from the survey did not even include other types of tobacco products, which are just as harmful. However, even realizing the harm that tobacco products can cause, tobacco companies use a variety of devious methods to draw people in to buy their product, especially younger people. With all of the money flowing in from their consumers, tobacco companies lobby very heavily in Congress and the House to prevent laws and regulations that will cut into their profits. According to tobaccofreekids.org, the tobacco industry spent $10.6 million to lobby Congress in the first half of 2003 (Tobacco-Free Kids). Organizations such as the American Legacy Foundation are annoyed by the lies that big tobacco companies tell; they decided to bring the truth out into the open. The aptly named “truth” campaign opposes the tactics that tobacco businesses use to advertise their product, and the campaign has decided to fight against the lies to provide the truth about cigarettes and tobacco. The truth campaign’s anti-smoking ads present a stunning portrayal of smoking that reflects the influence tobacco companies have on youth while also illustrating the consequences of addiction and use.

The American Legacy Foundation ran several print ads along with ads played on the TV, internet, and r...

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...tistics for U.S. adults:

National Health Interview Survey, 2008. National Center for Health Statistics.

Vital Health Stat 10(242). 2009

Spence, Homer E. "Fear Appeals in Marketing. A Social Perspective." The Journal of Marketing 36.3 (1972): 39-43. JSTOR. Web. 3 Nov. 2011. .

Thrasher, James F. "Mistrusting Companies, Mistrusting the Tobacco Industry: Clarifying the Context of Tobacco Prevention Efforts That Focus on the Tobacco Industry." Journal of Health and Social Behavior 47.4 (2006): 406-22. JSTOR. Web. 3 Nov. 2011. .

Tobacco-Free Kids. Media Center. Tobacco Industry Spent $10.6 Million to Lobby Congress in First Half of 2003 - Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids. Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. 6 Nov. 2003. Web. 06 Nov. 2011. .

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