By Megan Haugh

 

From the ashes of Big Tobacco, the “millennial Marlboro man”—Juul—is born.[1]  Compared to the height of the Big Tobacco industry, today’s advertisements by traditional cigarette manufacturers are nearly nonexistent.  Joe Camel may have died in 1997[2], but his legacy (and the legacy of Escort, Lucky Strike, Marlboro, Salem, and others) lives on.  The central themes of Big Tobacco’s advertising—”faux medical imagery and exaggerated health claims, posh cultural icons and celebrity endorsements, and the explicit targeting of youth populations”—have reemerged in advertising for e-cigarettes.[3]  With increasing health concerns over e-cigarettes, should Juul and other e-cigarette manufacturers be subject to the same advertising restrictions that Big Tobacco faces?

 

Dr. Robert Jackler (an ear, nose, and throat surgeon from Stanford University) is well-versed in these advertising themes.[4]  Dr. Jackler, who researches advertisements for both traditional cigarettes and e-cigarettes, has collected thousands advertisements.[5]  Based on his review, Dr. Jackler concluded that e-cigarette advertising parallels traditional cigarette advertising.[6]  Like Big Tobacco promoting the health benefits of cigarettes, Juul and other e-cigarette manufacturers have promoted vaping as a healthier alternative to smoking.[7]  In the past, Big Tobacco once advertised low-tar cigarettes and light cigarettes as a healthy alternative.  In fact, Lucky Strike once advertised “20,679 Physicians say ‘Luckies are less irritating’ . . . Your throat protection against irritation against cough.”[8]  Similarly, e-cigarette manufacturers have claimed that e-cigarette’s are either healthier than traditional cigarettes or, more simply, are healthy.[9]  By comparison, e-cigarette manufacturers have claimed that e-cigarette’s are either healthier than traditional cigarettes or, more simply, are healthy.[10]  Although Juul denies this, the company’s advertisements used language like “switch” and “alternative” which imply a health a benefit.[11]  However, like traditional cigarettes, there have been reported health problems associated with e-cigarettes.[12]  In 2019, the Center for Disease Control reported 380 cases of respiratory illness and six deaths related to e-cigarettes.[13]

 

The targeting of youth populations is another parallel between traditional cigarette advertising and e-cigarette advertising.  Big Tobacco used flavored cigarettes (such as cotton-candy or chocolate) to entice children into smoking.[14]  Because Big Tobacco’s strategy was so effective, the FDA banned “kid-friendly” flavors of cigarettes.[15]  Like traditional cigarettes, there are flavored e-cigarettes.[16]  The similarities don’t end there though.  Dr. Jackler also noted that Juul and other e-cigarette manufacturers have used “bright colors, sleek design and fashionable millennial models” to target children.[17]  Even traditional cigarette manufactures cannot ignore the parallels.[18]  Phillip-Morris, the manufacturer of Marlboro cigarettes, actually sued Juul because their advertising was too similar.[19]

 

Right now, there are several pending lawsuits filed against Juul and other e-cigarette manufacturers.[20]  These lawsuits allege that Juul and other e-cigarette manufacturers are doing exactly what Big Tobacco did—they have been deceptively advertising to children.  Today’s “millennial Marlboro man” is using the same, old tactics that Big Tobacco used.  E-cigarette advertisements highlight the product as a healthier alternative.  They also highlight “kid-friendly” flavors.  The issue is that e-cigarettes, like traditional cigarettes, are not healthy.  E-cigarette advertisements should be subjected to the same scrutiny and regulations that traditional cigarette advertisements face.

 

[1] See Nitasha Tiku, Juul’s Answer to Its PR Crisis?  The Millennial Marlboro Man, Wired (Jan. 8, 2019, 8:07 PM), https://www.wired.com/story/juuls-answer-pr-crisis-millennial-marlboro-man/.

[2] See Stuart Elliott, Joe Camel, a Giant in Tobacco Marketing, Is Dead at 23, The New York Times (Jul. 11, 1997), https://www.nytimes.com/1997/07/11/business/joe-camel-a-giant-in-tobacco-marketing-is-dead-at-23.html.

[3] Kate Keller, Ads for E-Cigarettes Today Harken Back to the Banned Tricks of Big Tobacco, Smithsonian Magaine(Apr. 11, 2018), https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/electronic-cigarettes-millennial-appeal-ushers-next-generation-nicotine-addicts-180968747/.

[4] See id.

[5] See id.

[6] See Vaping and Cigarette Ads, NPR: Weekend Edition Sunday (Sept. 15, 2019, 7:45 AM), https://www.npr.org/2019/09/15/760936463/vaping-and-cigarette-ads.

[7] See id.

[8] See Keller, supra note 3.

[9] See NPR, supra note 6.

[10] See NPR, supra note 6.

[11] See id.

[12] See id.

[13] See id.

[14] See id.

[15] See NPR, supra note 6..

[16] See id.

[17] See Keller, supra note 3.

[18] See id.

[19] See id.

[20] See Sara E. Teller, Lawsuits Allege Juul is Deceptively Marketing Products to Teens, Legal Reader (Aug. 10, 2018), https://www.legalreader.com/lawsuits-allege-juul-deceptively-marketing-teens/.

Image Source: https://www.vox.com/2019/1/25/18194953/vape-juul-e-cigarette-marketing