ImpacTeen Research Papers
Population Exposure to State Funded Televised Anti-Tobacco Advertising in the United States – 37 States and the District of Columbia, 1999-2003
Szczypka G, Wakefield M, Emery S. Flay B, Chaloupka F, Slater S, Terry-McElrath Y, Saffer H.
With the development of anti-tobacco programs in all states during the 1990’s, spurred by funding from the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement with the major cigarette manufacturers, most states instituted anti-tobacco media campaigns. Using media monitoring data from Nielsen Media Research for the largest 75 Designated Market Areas in the United States, this report summarizes the estimated average monthly exposure to state anti-tobacco advertising in 37 states and the District of Columbia from 1999-2003. The report uses Gross Rating Points (GRPs) for all households with televisions, and Target Rating Points (TRPs) for those aged 12 to 17 years, to estimate potential exposure to advertising. From 1999 to 2002, more states utilized televised advertising, increasing average exposure for television households from 1.30 ads per month in 1999 to 3.63 ads per month in 2002, and for adolescents aged 12-17 from 0.84 ads per month in 1999 to 1.43 ads per month in 2002. In 2003, although there was a slight increase in the number of states with paid media campaigns, average population exposure to anti-tobacco advertising campaigns declined to 3.20 ads per month among television households and 1.13 ads per month among adolescents aged 12 to 17, reflecting an overall reduction of campaign funding, which states attributed to budget crises. After 2003, additional cuts in anti-tobacco funding will more than likely further reduce the number of states with anti-tobacco media campaigns. Research indicates that televised anti-tobacco advertising can reduce smoking among adults and youth. The short term savings gained from such reductions in televised anti-tobacco advertising campaigns may likely produce longer-term costs from smoking related disease.
Research Paper (PDF – 269KB)