Is Smoking Too Cool for the Big Screens?

Smoking cigarettes has been widely popular since the mid-20th century and people still continue to smoke today. However within the last few decades, people have become more aware of the consequences of smoking tobacco. Now in the media, instead of seeing cigarettes ads, we see ads for stopping smoking addiction, whether it be with the woman talking with her electrolarynx, or also known as a throat back or nicotine patches and gum.

We also see currently society pushing the idea that smoking will kill you towards children to prevent them from smoking. Kids are receiving speeches at school from an early age, they watch health videos, and they learn what smoking can do to their bodies. Now advocacy groups are taking it up a step, and they want to limit the amount of smoking in movies for teenagers and children. Brooks Barnes wrote an article and she mentioned that Hollywood has reduced the amount of smoking within the last few years drastically, but the Movie Picture Association of America refuses to automatically label movies that contain smoking to rated-R.

Disney has an anti-smoking policy since 2007, and this means that any of the Disney-labeled films cannot contain any smoking. However, the shareholders want to push this even further and how Disney to extend this policy to their PG-13 movies too. These shareholders have been sending these types of requests to the movie companies based off reports created by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the surgeon general. The CDC even believes that if future movies that portrays any actresses or actors smoking are labeled rated-R, then millions of deaths can be prevented and teen smokers will be reduce by every one in five.

I do strongly believe that the media plays a huge part in advertising smoking to kids by showing them how cool it is and that it cannot hurt you, but I am not actually sure if I believe changing a label on movies will reduce and prevent that many teen smokers remarkably. Many movies do display smoking as the cool thing to do,but I feel like some shows and movies now show that smoking is bad and harmful. I am sure by changing all movies with cigarettes will decrease the amount of death caused by smoking and the number of young smokers, but it will most likely be a very slow process. I also think there are ways to get around this. For example, many kids who are not 17 years old, still see rated-R movies or there will always be smoking around them whether it is in tv shows or in person.

Even though I am a little doubtful on this idea, I hope to see it come true in the future and show that it can make a difference. Beside movies, I think we need to take more approaches to get rid of smoking and other drugs on other medias like music, shows, and video games. I just hope that children will learn how harmful cigarettes can be and that they make the right choices in the future.

10 Responses to "Is Smoking Too Cool for the Big Screens?"

Ann Privorotskiy says:

October 1, 2014 at 4:16 pm

I agree with your opinion that prohibiting smoking scenes in Disney movies will not make much of a significant impact, but I also hope that I’m wrong in saying so. I feel like decades ago, this would have made a bigger difference in decreasing the amount of teens that smoke because back then, smoking was associated more with “being cool” and “fitting in.” I feel that nowadays, the youth is aware of the dangerous health effects that are associated with smoking, so they are more conscious in terms of making that decision. The decision to smoke in today’s generation is often attributed to stress and doing it socially with friends. I do think that making children aware of the harmful effects of smoking at a young age, plays a role in the decision making patterns of these children in the future. Although I’m skeptical, I hope to see a decrease in the amount of teenagers and young adults who smoke.
anandpoonai says:

October 1, 2014 at 8:00 pm

Your blog brought up many imperative points that I feel many teenagers and young children need to see. Cigarette use, in my opinion, is pointless and it really bugs me that people still use them even though they understand the deleterious effects of smoking. I completely agree with your concluding statements about the fact that although Disney prohibits smoking scenes, teenagers will still use them. I think that Disney is doing the right thing by not advocating such a terrible habit, but eventually, it will be a young person’s choice to smoke cigarettes or not. Although I do think media does have some influence on a person’s choice to start smoking, I don’t think its the only cause. I do agree with you when you say that diminishing smoking habits would be a very gradual process. When you say that there are ways to get around the whole prohibiting of smoking, you couldn’t be more true. There is always a way to beat the system. It would be great if many young people would make the choice to stay away from cigarettes because overtime, health related problems would decrease and society would have one less problem to deal with. Overall, really insightful blog!
stephenesses says:

October 2, 2014 at 12:59 pm

I completely agree that chain the rating for a movie will not dramatically decrease the rate of teenage smoking. To me it is the same as things like cursing, despite the ratings in the movies, children see it on the street. It is unavoidable, it is all around us. Children, even if protected from seeing it in movies, will see things like smoking in other areas of life. It is nice to see a move to limit smoking i movies, and in other areas of life, but I am not sure that it will make a significant impact on the rates of teenage smoking.
Susan Tenneriello says:

October 3, 2014 at 5:08 pm

I’d like to know the title of the article, and why Barnes is foregrounding this issue. Your post also raises the issue of censorship. Smoking is bad, yes. But soda, sugary juices, candy, and assorted snack foods are also unhealthy for children and teens and contribute to lifestyle habits. Should these health-related areas be regulated too?
ehughes1 says:

October 4, 2014 at 9:01 pm

I agree with you, Krystal, in that simply changing the label of a movie will not significantly reduce the number of teen smokers. I cannot deny that movies and TV shows sometimes glorify the act of smoking, but changing a movie’s rating to rated R won’t stop people, specifically children and teenagers, from watching these movies. As Susan stated, this post raises the issue of censorship. Should these advocates be protesting for stricter ratings of movies with smoking content? I know it’s for a good cause, but that is just further reinforcing the NSA’s power to watch us and limit what we watch. I thought this was the United States of America we were living in, not North Korea. Of course, this is very radical and a bit extreme to think–but this is how it starts. I’m definitely not condoning the current situation to continue, but the media beyond movie screens is also a gigantic issue to worry about. Songs and video games sometimes have references to smoking too, and ratings such as “explicit” and “mature” respectively, don’t stop that many people. The CDC will need to be well equipped before waging this extensive war.
nicholasleung says:

October 5, 2014 at 7:35 pm

I totally agree that there has definitely been a change in the smoking/cigarette content in film/media, but unfortunately I don’t think it’s enough to completely halt underaged smoking, or smoking in general. Cigarette use has become a staple in American society, almost to a point where it has been romanticized. Sure, you’ll see all the health ads and commercials against it, but I don’t think it’s going to stop people who 1. already do it, or 2. have been surrounded by it. However, I do stay really hopeful for a day where cigarettes are finally marginalized and dissociated with American culture.
j96lee says:

October 6, 2014 at 12:54 am

I agree that there has been a major improvement in the attempts to prevent smoking teens and even adults through the media. At first, I thought it was a little ridiculous for movies showing actors smoking to be rated-R. It would not really cause any changes; it would actually probably cause more outrage due to the unreasonable number of movies rated-R. However, gradually, as generations pass, the number of people exposed to smoking will decrease due to this limited media publication. I doubt if the media industry would ever actually begin to censor smoking.
holdencoreystein says:

October 6, 2014 at 10:14 am

I believe gradually removing smoking from movies will make an impact on society. I also feel that the media has a significant influence on society, whether it be television, radio, music, or movies. With that said, I do feel it is Hollywood’s first amendment right to project whatever scenes or themes they choose, within reason. Removing smoking from movies directed towards kids and teenagers is a promising first step in reducing the population who smokes, but it is only as impactful as a step. The “war” against smoking could only be won from attacking multiple fronts; curbing smoking in movies is only a part of the offensive. The combination of ad campaigns, smoke-free areas, and cigarette taxes have already reduced the amount of smokers drastically. This is a trend I expect to continue well into our generation and the future.
krystalau says:

October 6, 2014 at 11:09 am

Professor Susan, the title of the article is Advocacy Groups Challenge Studios Over Smoking in Youth-Rated Movies. I think Mr. Barnes might be foregrounding this issue because even though shareholders have been pushing to censor smoking in the movie industry for a while now, an organization called the Interfaith Center for Corporate Responsibility has recently been pushing Disney the most to prohibit smoking even on their pg-13 films. Also, Mr. Barnes’s articles focuses on movie industries, especially Disney. I think things like sugary food and candy is unhealthy to kids too, and I believe they should be regulated to a certain extent. I don’t think anything should be completely limited or cut out, or I feel like that would be going too far like what Erin was saying.
michalsudo says:

October 7, 2014 at 1:38 pm

There’s little I hate more than having to walk behind someone who is smoking, smoking is an unhealthy choice that has a negative impact on both the user and those surrounding him/her. What most people don’t realize is that the tobacco industry is given a huge disadvantage in our capitalistic society. There are commercials that detail the dangers and effects of smoking, available both on television and on every pack of cigarettes, but tobacco advertisements were made illegal. In the movie “Thank You for Smoking” a lobbyist made a good point, if a reminder of how unhealthy cigarettes are will be put on every package with all the side effects then same should be done on all food that is high in sodium and fat since heart disease is the leading cause of death. If there is a movement to make movies with all potentially deadly aspects of life censored then movies should not have any weapons, this includes the swords and guns used in almost all Disney movies like Beauty and the Beast and Pocahontas. As unhealthy as smoking is, regardless of how evil we perceive it to be, the extra steps taken to censor cigarettes out of movies contradicts the freedom we hold true to our hearts. Let’s not forget that without the tobacco industry, starting in Jamestown and proving to be the lifeline of America during it’s initial colonization, America would probably not be where it is right now.

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