Tobacco Documents Online

AUG1 1 10 THE WALI:. STREET JOURNAL FRIDAY, AUGUST 11, 1995 i- ADVERTISIHG/By KE1/NP.OfLOMAM Ageneies Are Gearing Up to Fight Proposed Tobacco Regulations WdisOD Aveatie wW be atao0g t6t 6it. losers if new regulations prapored by the Clfntoa admil~tcatloa that drastiaflt tr strkt to6aooo adva'tlaing attd ptvtnotbs uftitaately take effett. The outdoor advortisinS iadtt:uy at6 ntag>txioe pablfaiSets rely most dea.iiy a. ogarette ads. In 1991. the tobacco in- dustry spent SI21.9 million in outdoor adrrrtlsatgm aa aotothtg for 12% of the teeas- , 's tje.e- enes. It is the sec- ood biggest spender in ottt0aor advertfs- iag behind entertaiment attd smsst. Mmts. And the tobaceo iadmy speat 5284.8 tniilioa last year in taagaaaes, socotmttng for 3.3% of the tnaptfne ittdtta try's totai: revenue. But the testrimos abo wonid hurt the ad aod ~ ~ a that work for the tob.eco eompa- fndtzstry executives are atr+ady pre. the Faodtand Drug Atimiaist:atloa. Six trade Staaps. inauding tdeAsioefatloe of lrariooU Advertisers and the American Association of Ad.ertisist; Agenciei, say tbey pian b: tile suit ia federal coort in NoM Carotias, dtalkagin< the peopoeds,. Ad.erti:tog exeaai.es oaaoead ttnt tee te- sstiWotn are aa unconstludtlanf itdei.QeW ment al free speech, and they say the kpf battle may drag on thtoagft the turn af ine anttsfy. Under the proposed regulatfotu, ouH door ad.ertlaittg for cigarettes would be banoed wftAiu 1A0o feet of xsools aad playgrounds. cigarette ad.erttsfng in pnbs hnrioos witb. tt>ort tam I9'A of tAeir felderShip be tlmtted eo indttde onqr text wilhotit atqr pietua+rs or drawings, and btand-name ad.adift would be btumed on products not related to tobaceo ptadtteta. such as T-sbirts and jackets. Also, advertising at sporting events would be restricted to text ooqr on staditn billboards and kiiisim. The Marlboro Man, for example, would become an extinct ieon at stadiums. There are already a number of areaas that restrict tobacco advertising. T'he exception: ateaas that ace, of coutse, within 1..000 feet of a school. In that rrse, tobacou ad.ertiung would be forbidden entirelT. '1'iere is eoucera that if sucti limits are pfaced on totuaonadsertlsing: the govan- mmt wsa't stop tbere: say media anit ad.eafsioE exeeutl.es. "The next thittg you law'w the' gorettt' toetu will put ice cream on the Ust of pradnm to regulate because it's Imown to attee high cholesterol." says Kent BrvwartdR, senior vice pnt5lden: of Wes- tesrliiedfaand general manager c,* RoWng Soone, a Wetnter Media publication. "If tobacco is so bad, why not ban it entirely. These regulations are ridiculous. How can you have something that is legal and yet aa't be advertised?" Magazines account for the biUh of to• brcoo adrertistog& but outdoa' advertl:ing wodd be hurt the most. U the ban is passed as proposed. ..that will drive a stake tlnvttgtt the hart of outdoor advertlsing.'" says Hal Shoup. exeattive vice prts;ident of the American Association of Advertising Ageacia. "By not being albwed within IAOY feet of a playground or school vitttalty diminates outdoor adve~tising in dtles." Nancy Fietcher. presiclent and chief executive officer of the Ou:daor Ad- .ertlsing Bttreau, says that since, 1990 the iadustty has voluntarily restricted itself uot to carry tobacco or liquor advertising witlsin 500 feet of cdttt'rbeaatnd s:bools. In 19lt, the most recent figures the ad isdmtry eompiled, the tobacco industry spent a total of t310.2 miWon in advertis- iag. a drop from 5382.1 million in 199Z. , Under the new propatala, billboards , aod tlat tobaeoo ads would be limited to .a* text. Goaewotdd be poaa's featuring stylishly dressed women for Virginia Siitns and yttppies having a grand old time in the backyard while taking a drag on a NewporL The proposed regulations wouldn't just limit media advertising. The IMA also ptvQotes snttiSttg out pnomotioial efforts ftots tob~cco aompanies. including the highly successful technique of plastering ei<aeettetogos on everything from lighters to T-shirfs to baseball caps. Philip Mot3is. farittstaaeer has a.aluabie fraechise with ib Marlboro Gear catalog. an offshoot of it; Marlboro Country Store catalog. A Philip Morris spokeswoman says the go ar uiss of youth access. Our promotions are nm in per- fectly lawful means. We limit IMarlboro Gearl to smokers over 21. YPe're yery eontxrned about the impact on our promo' dam.. So are the companies that create the promotional paraphernalia. "Clearly we aren't happy about these propa,als." says Terry Angstadt. executive vice president of Cymtt, a company in Gloucesier. btass.. that designs promotional products for Philip Morris, among others. "This is a freedom of choice issue for adults. If they want to purchase Marlboro products and are of the legal age. they should be allowed to.•• The Clinton administration is also pro- pasittg that the tobacco industry fund a t150 mif lion annual education campaign to tty oo prevent people under i8 years old from smoking. That recalls 1971, when the television networks and local statlom were forced by the gorerttment, under the equal time reguiatfon. to give antismoking groups free air tfine equivalent to the amount of time the tobacco industry received for its paid advertising. Because antismoking ads proved so effective, the tobacco companies eventually agreed to stop advertising on television. - Sports protnotions are also targeted under the proposed regulations. Cigarette brands would be prohibited from being Itaud as an event sponsor. That would piaee such racing car events as the Winston Cup in jeopardy, says a spokes- wotnan for R.J. Reynolds T.bacco. The company could still place a Winston logo on a sports car, the spokeswoman says. "as king as it is black and white" and not representing the familiar red-and-white pack. While the race could no longer be called the Winston Cup, it could be re- named the R.J. Reynolds Cup. But marketing executives say the regu- lations aren't expected to face smooth sailing. "This kind of sweeping regulation is very questionable under the constitu- tion." says Douglas J. Wood. an attorney specializing in advertising with the New York law firm Hail Dickler Kent Friedman & Wood and the author of "Please Be Ad-Vised: The Legal Reference Guide for the Advertising Executive." "These restrictions are too broad, they go over the top." he•says. "U you have a problem with the product. in this case cigarettes, address the product." Daniel J. Jaffe, executive vice presi- dent of the Association of National Adver tisers says the Clinton administration "is eoiag much further down the censorship path than at any time in our history. These proposals constitute a virtual de facto ban on tobacxo advertising." George Washington University law pro- fessor John Banzhaf, who led the fight to get antismoking ads on televisior free of charge in 1971. belir rs the a_-erttsinK industry is off base in its arguments. "We restrict advertising of drugs," says Mr. Hanzhaf. "If we are going to treat nicotine as a drug, then such restrictions are justified and needed." Mr. Banzhaf says the liquor industry doesn't protest its inability to sell spirits in vending machines. (Under the FDA pro- posal. all cigarette vending machines will be banned.) "It's funny," he says. -Things only become unconstitutional when it ap- plies to the tobacco industry." - 89278403