By Mara Crawford

For this assignment I decided to analyze tobacco. Tobacco is used by many Americans and tobacco has been used for years in my close family. I’m curious why so many people use tobacco when its negative health effects are so well known. According to the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, “tobacco use is the largest preventable cause of death and disease in the United States and each year approximately 480,000 Americans die from tobacco-related illnesses” (2017). I decided to analyze this particular tobacco advertisement because Camel cigarettes are familiar to me and this advertisement appealed most to me initially. The unusual use of a personified camel with bright colors automatically pulled in my attention so I’m assuming it does the same for other consumers.

According to the R.J. Reynold Tobacco Companies Official Site, R.J. Reynolds was the owner and founder of the Camel tobacco company that has been around since 1913. Camel’s became so popular because they were the first prepackaged cigarette (R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company – Official Site 2017). Before Camel’s, smokers would roll their own cigarettes. The 20 cigarette pack, the 10 pack carton, and the cellophane wrapping are all standards established by the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company (R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company – Official Site 2017). By Camel’s 100th anniversary in 2013 they had sold 4 trillion cigarettes (R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company – Official Site 2017).

The mission of the R.J. Reynolds company who produce Camel, Pall Mall, and Newport is “we will achieve market leadership by transforming the tobacco industry” (R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company – Official Site 2017). Their website includes information on “transforming tobacco” with claims that they are reducing the harm of tobacco and preventing youth from using tobacco. R.J. Reynold’s cigarettes make up one third of the total cigarette sales in the United States, making them one of the most credentialed tobacco producers in our country (R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company – Official Site 2017).

The intended audience for tobacco is anyone over the age of 18, or 21 in some states such as California. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 13% of adults aged 18–24 years smoke, 17.7% of adults aged 25–44 years smoke, 17% of adults aged 45–64 years smoke, and 8.4% of adults aged 65 years and older smoke (2017). Young adults and the elderly alike seem to enjoy smoking tobacco which gives cigarette companies a huge advantage. This particular advertisement was placed in magazines and on the television which are both forms of media that likely reach many different types of consumers, even children. In this advertisement we see Joe the Camel who has been controversial in the Camel advertisements because he seems to be appealing to children (Wikipedia 2017). Along with Joe the Camel, this advertisement features a sports car and an appealing woman with the beach and the city in the background which appears to be marketing to men who consider themselves high class or to men who would like to be thought of as high class. The warm colors and the beach may also be attracting women to this advertisement.

Tobacco is a plant whose addictive ingredient is nicotine. Tobacco can be smoked, chewed, or sniffed (National Institute of Drug Abuse 2017). While smoking tobacco, nicotine effects feelings of reward and pleasure. The nicotine is absorbed into your blood and causes the release of adrenaline which then increases blood pressure, breathing and heart rate (National Institute of Drug Abuse 2017). These long term changes in the brain are what cause addiction to nicotine (National Institute of Drug Abuse 2017).

Smoking tobacco is both addictive and dangerous. Tobacco use can cause health issues including lung cancer, chronic bronchitis, emphysema, leukemia, cataracts, pneumonia, and heart disease which can lead to stroke or heart attack (National Institute of Drug Abuse 2017). Smoking tobacco while pregnant has serious implications on your unborn child including low birth rate, preterm delivery, and even death (American Pregnancy Association 2017). Smoking tobacco can also feel physically addicting, often times people crave the feeling of something in between their fingers or in their mouth. Smoking tobacco also has social implications and people may feel addicted to the thought of a smoke break with their friends. Smoking tobacco can also lead to gum disease and can cause bad breath and discoloration of teeth.

The advertisement above only mentions that smoking while pregnant may have effects on the unborn child, however, it failed to mention any of the other negative effects of smoking. I would consider the fact that tobacco contains addictive and harmful ingredients important to know and, in my opinion, it should be included in all tobacco advertisements. Extreme health risks should also be included in warning labels and on all advertisements.

The first thing that caught my attention in this advertisement was the unusual looking camel. By featuring something unusual the company will draw more attention to their advertisement. They have also personified the camel which makes it easier for us as people to connect with and relate to the camel. Joe the Camel is wearing a suit and sun glasses which leads us to believe he is in a high class situation. The sports car in the background also helps to capture our attention as we are often interested in rare or expensive things and we might believe that smoking Camels will get us into the same situation Joe the Camel is in. The advertisement also features a pretty woman who is giving her attention to Joe the Camel which might make us believe that smoking Camels will help us stand out and appeal to women. The background in the advertisement is a beach with a city skyline which is also appealing to many possible Camel consumers and might remind of us a place we’d like to be visiting. The warm colors used in the advertisement provide a sense of relaxation. The words “smooth character” bring all the aspects of the advertisement together and suggest that smoking Camels will give us the appeal Joe possesses. All of the advertising techniques used in this advertisement are deceptive because smoking a Camel cigarette has nothing to do with any of the situation shown.

This advertisement is no different than most drug advertisements. They aim to portray an appealing situation to possible consumers and to increase the amount of product they can sell. The switch from drug companies only advertising to physicians to drug companies advertising directly to their consumers allowed for more play in advertisement techniques such as weasel words, use of color and or background, use of celebrities, use of sex appeal, etc. According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, “58% of physicians agreed strongly that direct to consumer ads make the drugs seem better than they really are” (2017).

Tobacco is a commonly used drug and is legal for anyone who is 18 or older (21 in some states) in the United States. I can see how smoking a cigarette would be a social activity or a boredom killer, however, based on my research of tobacco and nicotine use I would not recommend this drug to anyone. In my opinion, the possible health risks (heart disease, cancer, etc.) outweigh any possible “highs”.

 

References:
American Pregnancy Association. (2017). Smoking During Pregnancy. http://americanpregnancy.org/pregnancy-health/smoking-during-pregnancy/

National Institute of Drug Abuse (2017). Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products. https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/cigarettes-other-tobacco-products

Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. (2017). Tobacco Use. https://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/topics-objectives/topic/tobacco-use

R.J. Reynolds. (2017). Transforming Tobacco. Who we are. http://www.rjrt.com/transforming-tobacco/who-we-are/

U.S. Food and Drug Administration. (2017). The Impact of Direct-to-Consumer Advertising. https://www.fda.gov/Drugs/ResourcesForYou/Consumers/ucm143562.htm

Wikipedia. (2017). Camel (cigarette). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camel_(cigarette)