Transcript Effects of Print Media on Attitudes Toward Smoking

Effects of Print Media on Attitudes Toward
Smoking: Results From the Indiana Media
Tracking Survey and Newspaper Tracking
Systems
Alec Ulasevich, PhD
Clarese C. Astrin, PhD
Steve Blahut, PhD
Miranda Spitznagle, MPH
Michelle Jones, MA
American Institutes For Research
Indiana Tobacco Prevention and Cessation Agency
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Background
 Media Advocacy is an important component of
tobacco use prevention programs
 News Media is an important source of health
information
 Little is known on the effect of media coverage
on attitudes toward tobacco control
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Research Question
 How does the amount of media
coverage of specific tobacco control
issues affect individual attitudes toward
tobacco use and tobacco control?
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Data Sources
 ITPC News Media Tracking System (NMTS)
 Comprehensive collection of all newspaper articles
published in Indiana’s daily and weekly papers
 ITPC Media Tracking Survey (MTS)
 A random sample survey of 1000 Hoosier adults measuring
awareness of Indiana’s counter marketing campaign and
attitudes toward tobacco use and tobacco control
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Methodology
 Hierarchical Linear Modeling (HLM)
 Aggregate number of articles published on various tobacco
control topics in each Indiana region one year prior to
administration of MTS
 Effect of media coverage on individual’s attitudes toward
tobacco control and tobacco use clustered within each Indiana
region.
 Control for exposure to Indiana’s anti-tobacco media
campaign
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Key Measures: Media Coverage Topics
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Clean indoor air
Youth access
Advertising restrictions
Economic disincentives (e.g., taxes)
Secondhand smoke
Health consequences of smoking
Healthcare cost
Prevalence/Cessation
Coalition/partner activities
Media/outreach campaigns
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Key Measures: Attitudes and Beliefs
 Do you believe tobacco use by young people is a serious
problem?
 Three measures related to perceived importance of youth
smoking
 People are being used by tobacco companies and tobacco
companies put profits over people
 I feel comfortable telling other people my age not to smoke
 My family does not want me to smoke
 All questions were rated on a 4 point agreement scale
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Results: Youth Smoking is An Important Issue
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Individuals in regions with greater exposure to newspaper articles
about tobacco taxes were significantly more likely to indicate that
youth smoking is an important issue (t = 2.286, p < .05) compared to
those individuals in regions exposed to fewer newspaper articles
about tobacco taxes.
 Individuals in regions with greater exposure to newspaper articles
about secondhand smoke were significantly more likely to indicate
that youth smoking is an important issue (t = 3.261, p < .05)
compared to those individuals in regions exposed to fewer
newspaper articles about secondhand smoke.
 Individuals in regions with greater exposure to newspaper articles
about the impact of smoking on healthcare costs were significantly
more likely to indicate that youth smoking is an important issue (t =
2.078, p < .05) compared to individuals in regions exposed to fewer
newspaper articles about the impact of smoking on healthcare costs.
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Findings: Effects on other attitudes
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Individuals in regions with greater exposure to newspaper articles about
health consequences of smoking were significantly more likely to
indicate the belief that tobacco companies put profits over people (t
= 2.890, p < .05) compared to those individuals in regions exposed to
fewer newspaper articles about health consequences of smoking.
 Individuals in regions with greater exposure to newspaper articles about
health consequences of smoking were significantly more likely to
indicate that they would feel comfortable telling someone their age
not to smoke (t = 2.314, p < .05) compared to individuals in regions
exposed to fewer newspaper articles about health consequences of
smoking.
 Individuals in regions where newspapers carried a greater overall
number of tobacco-related articles were more likely to indicate that
their families would prefer for them not to smoke (t=2.799, p < .05)
compared to individuals in regions where newspapers carried fewer
overall tobacco-related articles.
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Conclusion
Amount of coverage on taxes, second hand smoke and health care
costs were significantly related to perceived importance of youth
smoking as a social issue
The issue of youth access is salient in coverage of cigarette taxes.
However, issues of second hand smoke and health care costs are only
tangentially related to youth smoking. The effect of media coverage of
these issues could be the overall increase in the awareness of smoking
as an important issue that generalized to youth smoking.
Overall amount of coverage was significantly related to a belief
that one’s family does not want one to smoke.
This finding suggests that the media attention given to the overall topic
of tobacco control may contribute to the normative beliefs that smoking
is not acceptable. The belief that one’s family is opposed to one’s
smoking may be a reflection of this overall negative social attitude
toward smoking.
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Conclusions
Amount of coverage of health consequences of smoking was
significantly related to negative attitudes toward tobacco industry
and willingness to tell others not to smoke
The observed relationship between the amount of media coverage of
health consequences of smoking and negative attitudes toward the
tobacco industry suggests that health information may be a factor in
moving individuals from viewing smoking as a private issue to viewing it
more as a public health concern. As such, the attribution of the behavior
may have changed from personal choice to that of manipulation by the
industry. The relationship between coverage of health consequences of
smoking and respondents stating willingness to tell others not to smoke
suggests that media coverage may socially empower individuals to
advise others not to smoke. Thus, the news media may not only
reinforce already held beliefs about the dangers of smoking, but may
also allow individuals to cite “outside” credible sources in telling others
not to smoke.
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