The Need for Product Placement and Smoking Cessation

This history of tobacco companies are widely known for product placement. The tough rugged movie star lighting up a cigarette after the climax of the latest summer blockbuster with a super-model in his other arm looking like the hero he is. But what other places have tobacco companies pushed their products? They have worked to get their product into the feature film “The Muppet Movie”. What would the advantage be for having your product be supplied in the children’s movie? (2) With roughly 50,000 people dying every year to smoking-related diseases could this be an attempt to “restock” on clientele?

It is a tough business world and the tobacco companies are under the gun with the new fad of smoking bans coming of age. The smokers all understand the consequences of smoking, and they accept them readily. But do they understand what they were doing to everyone around them through second hand smoke? In a recent study done in Scotland over a smoking ban put in place, they were able to look at the changes employees underwent throughout the process of instating the smoking ban.

It started out with 80% of the workers complaining of respiratory conditions or discomfort, along with irritated eyes and throat. Just only one month after the ban took affect there was a 26% drop in the workers who complained of these ailments. Two months after the ban took affect the number jumped to 32%! Another amazing addition to this study was how the workers felt their quality of life was before and after. The workers all scored higher on their quality of life. (1)

1) http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/10/061012190032.htm

2) http://www.thetruth.com/