Smoke Free Movies has launched a series of print advertisements in several publications. This advertisement first ran on November 20, 2009 in State Legislatures.

One in a Series

Hollywood’s billion-dollar bailout from the states. And how it recruits more than a million kids to smoke.

States are now offering film producers and studios an estimated $1.4 billion in public subsidies. Including, last year, an estimated $830 million to subsidize movies with smoking, most of them rated PG-13.

That’s a public health disaster. Because more than 1.3 million members of Hollywood’s current adolescent audience are smokers who started smoking precisely because of the tobacco imagery they see on screen. Ultimately, that tobacco imagery will kill about 400,000 of them.

Taxpayers care deeply about youth smoking prevention. States spent $719 million to battle smoking this year. And polls show a majority favors making kid-rated movies smokefree.

So why do state governments spend more money on films that push smoking than they invest in programs that help kids resist starting to smoke? That’s a question every smart policy maker should start asking. Before the taxpayers do.

Download the new University of California, San Francisco film subsidy report at escholarship.org/uc/item/8nc8422j.

Smoke Free Movies
Smoking in movies kills in real life. Smoke Free Movie policies —the R-rating, certification of no payoffs, anti-tobacco spots, and an end to brand display — are endorsed by the World Health Organization, American Medical Association, AMA Alliance, American Academy of Pediatrics, American Heart Association, American Legacy Foundation, American Lung Association, Americans for Nonsmokers’ Rights, American Public Health Association, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, LA County Dept. of Health Services, New York State Dept. of Health, New York State PTA, and many others. Visit our web site or write: Smoke Free Movies, UCSF School of Medicine, San Francisco, CA 94143-1390.