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Smoking on TV/Commercials

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Haley3257

Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? New Mexico. I work at a local TV station. My department produces local TV commercials...usually for clients that don't want to spend huge amounts of money hiring an ad agency. Some of our clients recently have been Hooka places (sellers, lounges, etc.). There are many things one can smoke with a hooka...and of course some illegal things that you aren't supposed to.

My question is about what we can show in a commercial. I've heard that you can't advertise tobacco on TV. But I can not find anything online that backs that up. The hooka establishments don't really want to show people smoking tobacco so I don't think that's an issue. But they do want show people smoking. I know people can smoke in TV shows...but didn't know what the laws were regarding smoking in commercials...even if it's a legal substance that isn't tobacco.

Anybody have any info regarding laws on TV advertising and smoking?What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
 


TheGeekess

Keeper of the Kraken
Advertising cigarettes was banned in 1971.

"So Rich, Mild, and Fresh": A Critical Look at TV Cigarette Commercials, 1948-1971
Steve Craig

Terry Moellinger

For more than twenty years—until they were banned in 1971—cigarette commercials were a staple of American television. During this period, tobacco companies spent millions of dollars producing and airing elaborate ads designed to convince viewers that cigarettes were enjoyable, sophisticated, and harmless. As public awareness of smoking's serious health consequences grew, tobacco companies responded with new ads containing misleading assertions and confusing claims. When cigarette sales began to decline, advertisers embarked on fiercely competitive campaigns to promote new filter brands. Yet television commercials continued to skirt health issues and left consumers in the dark about the real risks of smoking. By the late 1960s, however, the link between cigarettes and disease was so well established that Congress took the extraordinary step of banning cigarette commercials from the airwaves, effective in early 1971. This article examines the twenty-two-year history of tobacco advertising on television and takes a critical look at some representative cigarette commercials."
"So Rich, Mild, and Fresh": A Critical Look at TV Cigarette Commercials, 1948-1971 -- Craig and Moellinger 25 (1): 55 -- Journal of Communication Inquiry

That should give you somewhere to start.
 

racer72

Senior Member
Your problem is not the ban of TV advertising from 1971, it's the FDA ruling from 1986 that is the problem. This decision extended the ban of TV advertising to all tobacco products (effectively ending the ads for smokeless tobacco) and also banned ads for tobacco related products and services. This means the TV ads for the hooka bars would be illegal. I would suggest your station owner and/or manager consult with a local attorney for a definitive ruling.
 

Haley3257

Member
thanks for the feedback...but still not exactly clear.

No tobacco in our commercials or smoking of tobacco. That's my question. I didn't know the specifics on smoking...is only for tobacco? These hooka places want to advertise their fruit flavored shisha. Or is Shisha a form of tobacco?

I don't know, but will probably have to consult with the attorney.
 
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Indiana Filer

Senior Member
thanks for the feedback...but still not exactly clear.

No tobacco in our commercials or smoking of tobacco. That's my question. I didn't know the specifics on smoking...is only for tobacco? These hooka places want to advertise their fruit flavored shisha. Or is Shisha a form of tobacco?

I don't know, but will probably have to consult with the attorney.
Shisha is tobacco. It's a moist type of tobacco, but it's still tobacco.
 

Roo

Member
Perhaps you could show smoke coming out of the hoses w/o anyone actually smoking. You could still show people with it, or around it, they just can't be smoking.
 

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