NY Teen Smoking Ads Slammed as Ineffective

A leading critic of the tobacco industry is telling New York state policymakers they should either do their tobacco-prevention advertising right or quit trying, the Oneonta Daily Star reported Feb. 10.

"It appears people in the (advertising) approval process are more concerned with avoiding controversy and not insulting the tobacco industry than in consistently delivering effective messages to kids," said Matthew Myers, president of the Washington-based Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, speaking at a hearing organized by Democrats in the state Assembly. Myers added that the state is spending too little on the ads to make much of an impact.

Ursula Bauer, director of the state Health Department's Tobacco Control Program, also said she was concerned about the quality of the ads. But the assistant director of the department called the campaign one of the most aggressive in the nation.