Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Comparative Study
. 2012:9:120170.
doi: 10.5888/pcd9.120170.

Smoking in top-grossing US movies, 2011

Stanton A Glantz  1 , Anne Iaccopucci, Kori Titus, Jonathan R Polansky
Affiliations
Comparative Study

Smoking in top-grossing US movies, 2011

Stanton A Glantz et al. Prev Chronic Dis. 2012.

Abstract

We reviewed the number of incidents of tobacco use (almost exclusively smoking) depicted in movies in the United States in 2011 to compare that with previously reported trends. We counted use or implied use of a tobacco product by an actor in all movies whose box office gross ranked in the top 10 for at least 1 week. Total tobacco incidents per movie rose 7% from 2010 to 2011, ending 5 years of decline; incidents rose 34% per movie rated G, PG, or PG-13 and 7% per R-rated movie. The reversal of progress toward less onscreen smoking in youth-rated movies underscores the need to rate movies with tobacco imagery as R, establishing an industry-wide market incentive to keep youth-marketed movies tobacco-free.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Line graph
Figure 1
Tobacco incidents in top-grossing US movies by year and movie rating, 1991–2011. Top-grossing movies were those that were among the 10 top-grossing movies in any calendar week of the year. An incident of tobacco use is 1 use or implied use of a tobacco product (almost exclusively smoking) by an actor. Historical data are from our earlier report (3)
Line graph
Figure 2
Tobacco incidents per youth-rated top-grossing US movie among companies with published policies related to tobacco in youth-rated movies, 2002–2011. Time Warner adopted its policy in 2005, Comcast in 2007, and Disney in 2004. Youth-rated movies are those rated G, PG, or PG-13 by the Motion Picture Association of America. Top-grossing movies were those that were among the 10 top-grossing movies in any calendar week of the year. An incident is 1 use or implied use of a tobacco product (almost exclusively smoking) by an actor. Historical data are from our earlier report (3).
Line graph
Figure 3
Tobacco incidents per youth-rated top-grossing US movie among companies without published policies related to tobacco in youth-rated movies, 2002–2011. Youth-rated movies are those rated G, PG, or PG-13 by the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA). Top-grossing movies were those that were among the 10 top-grossing movies in any calendar week of the year. An incident is 1 use or implied use of a tobacco product (almost exclusively smoking) by an actor. Independent companies are those that are not members of the MPAA. Historical data are from our earlier report (3).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Preventing tobacco use among youth and young adults — a report of the Surgeon General. Atlanta (GA): US Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health; 2012. - PubMed
    1. Ending the tobacco epidemic: a tobacco control strategic action plan for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Washington (DC): US Department of Health and Human Services; 2010. http://www.hhs.gov/ash/initiatives/tobacco/tobaccostrategicplan2010.pdf. Accessed January 23, 2011.
    1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Smoking in top-grossing movies — United States, 2010. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2011;60(27):910–3. - PubMed
    1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Smoking in top-grossing movies — United States, 1991–2009. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2010;59(32):1014–7. - PubMed
    1. Universal, a Comcast Company. Policy on tobacco depictions in films. Adopted April 16, 2007. http://www.universalpictures.com/legal/tobacco/index.html. Accessed June 26, 2012.

Publication types