The Effect of 10 Years of Tobacco Control in New York City
The Effect of 10 Years of Tobacco Control in New York City
Prior to 2006, the New York City Health Department's public education strategy for tobacco control relied primarily on print educational information. The 2005 "Everybody Loves a Quitter" campaign featured images of happy quitters, surrounded by family and friends. Focus groups with smokers showed that these kinds of positive messages were generally well received but suggested that they had little effect on cessation attempts.
On the basis of a review of promising evidence from Australia and Massachusetts on the efficacy of campaigns that aggressively show the health effects of smoking, the health department began producing and airing hard-hitting, antismoking media campaigns. To date, nine television campaigns have been produced by the health department, and many other similarly focused campaigns produced elsewhere also have been aired. These emotionally provocative campaigns feature graphic images of the health effects of smoking and stories of real people and families devastated by smoking-related illness and death. One such New York City campaign, "Cigarettes Are Eating You Alive," juxtaposed images of cigarette smoke entering the body with images of smoking-related damage in adults and children. It has been adopted for use in 14 countries and continues to be evaluated as a highly effective antismoking campaign. New York City's other advertising campaigns—"Marie," "Reverse the Damage," "Secondhand Smoke Kids," "Suffering Every Minute," "One Cigarette," and "Pain"—continue to pair graphic health consequences with emotionally provocative narratives to prompt smokers to quit. Early advertisements such as "Marie" and "Reverse the Damage" showed the health consequences for the smoker. "Marie," a woman with Buerger's disease and amputations as a result of smoking, told about her difficulty doing everyday activities. Later advertisements, such as "Suffering Every Minute" and "Pain," showed not only the consequences of smoking but also the effect on family members—a theme that was particularly powerful. Although all of these advertisements spoke to smoking-related death, they also depicted the suffering and debilitation that smoking-related illnesses can cause. New York State anti-tobacco campaigns also aired in New York City, as did national campaigns, such as those by the American Legacy Foundation.
Advertisements typically air on television four to five periods per year at an average gross rating point level (gross rating points measure reach of the media times the frequency of exposure; one gross rating point means that 1% of the audience had one exposure) of 1100 over a three- to four-week period and also may have included supporting placement in subway cars, on the sides of city buses, in daily newspapers, and online. The campaigns ended with the call to action to "Quit Smoking Today" and to call 3-1-1, New York City's information line, for help. Through 3-1-1, eligible smokers are referred to the New York State Smokers' Quitline and provided with free nicotine replacement therapy, which has been shown to double the chances of quitting successfully.
The New York City Health Department also began an annual, population-based nicotine patch and gum distribution program to complement the routine services provided through the New York State Smokers' Quitline. This program was designed as a time-limited effort occurring a few weeks per year and has been driven, since 2006, by hard-hitting media campaigns with a call to action directing smokers to call 3-1-1 for help quitting. By instilling a sense of urgency with a time-limited program, the giveaways greatly increased call volume and in 2010 resulted in more than 40 000 enrollees in just 16 days, the most successful campaign to date.
Making It Easier to Quit
Prior to 2006, the New York City Health Department's public education strategy for tobacco control relied primarily on print educational information. The 2005 "Everybody Loves a Quitter" campaign featured images of happy quitters, surrounded by family and friends. Focus groups with smokers showed that these kinds of positive messages were generally well received but suggested that they had little effect on cessation attempts.
On the basis of a review of promising evidence from Australia and Massachusetts on the efficacy of campaigns that aggressively show the health effects of smoking, the health department began producing and airing hard-hitting, antismoking media campaigns. To date, nine television campaigns have been produced by the health department, and many other similarly focused campaigns produced elsewhere also have been aired. These emotionally provocative campaigns feature graphic images of the health effects of smoking and stories of real people and families devastated by smoking-related illness and death. One such New York City campaign, "Cigarettes Are Eating You Alive," juxtaposed images of cigarette smoke entering the body with images of smoking-related damage in adults and children. It has been adopted for use in 14 countries and continues to be evaluated as a highly effective antismoking campaign. New York City's other advertising campaigns—"Marie," "Reverse the Damage," "Secondhand Smoke Kids," "Suffering Every Minute," "One Cigarette," and "Pain"—continue to pair graphic health consequences with emotionally provocative narratives to prompt smokers to quit. Early advertisements such as "Marie" and "Reverse the Damage" showed the health consequences for the smoker. "Marie," a woman with Buerger's disease and amputations as a result of smoking, told about her difficulty doing everyday activities. Later advertisements, such as "Suffering Every Minute" and "Pain," showed not only the consequences of smoking but also the effect on family members—a theme that was particularly powerful. Although all of these advertisements spoke to smoking-related death, they also depicted the suffering and debilitation that smoking-related illnesses can cause. New York State anti-tobacco campaigns also aired in New York City, as did national campaigns, such as those by the American Legacy Foundation.
Advertisements typically air on television four to five periods per year at an average gross rating point level (gross rating points measure reach of the media times the frequency of exposure; one gross rating point means that 1% of the audience had one exposure) of 1100 over a three- to four-week period and also may have included supporting placement in subway cars, on the sides of city buses, in daily newspapers, and online. The campaigns ended with the call to action to "Quit Smoking Today" and to call 3-1-1, New York City's information line, for help. Through 3-1-1, eligible smokers are referred to the New York State Smokers' Quitline and provided with free nicotine replacement therapy, which has been shown to double the chances of quitting successfully.
The New York City Health Department also began an annual, population-based nicotine patch and gum distribution program to complement the routine services provided through the New York State Smokers' Quitline. This program was designed as a time-limited effort occurring a few weeks per year and has been driven, since 2006, by hard-hitting media campaigns with a call to action directing smokers to call 3-1-1 for help quitting. By instilling a sense of urgency with a time-limited program, the giveaways greatly increased call volume and in 2010 resulted in more than 40 000 enrollees in just 16 days, the most successful campaign to date.
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