Tobacco imagery in prime-time television in Spain: A content analysis
Introduction Exposure to tobacco content in media among youth is a wellestablished risk factor for smoking initiation and continued use. This study assessed the prevalence and nature of tobacco imagery on Spanish prime-time television (TV) programming and its associations with program characteristic...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
European Publishing
2025-06-01
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| Series: | Tobacco Induced Diseases |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.tobaccoinduceddiseases.org/Tobacco-imagery-in-prime-time-television-in-Spain-A-content-analysis,204750,0,2.html |
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| Summary: | Introduction
Exposure to tobacco content in media among youth is a wellestablished
risk factor for smoking initiation and continued use. This study
assessed the prevalence and nature of tobacco imagery on Spanish prime-time
television (TV) programming and its associations with program characteristics:
genre, production nationality, and broadcast timing.
Methods
A content analysis of 63959 minutes of TV programming in 2021,
excluding advertisements and trailers, across 18 broadcast channels examined the
presence of tobacco imagery: actual tobacco use, tobacco cultural cues, smoking
ban violations, tobacco brand appearances, or any of these.
Results
The analysis revealed that 2.4% of the TV programming time contained
at least one instance of tobacco imagery, resulting in 8.5 million impressions for
viewers aged 4–24 years. Feature films had the highest prevalence of tobaccorelated
content (adjusted prevalence ratio, APR=11.9; 95% CI: 9.5–14.9). Tobaccorelated
content appeared more frequently outside designated children's protection
hours (PR=0.7; 95% CI: 0.6–0.80). However, its presence within the designated
children's protection schedule remains a significant concern, generating 15.6
million tobacco impressions for young viewers.
Conclusions
The seemingly modest content level of tobacco imagery (2.4%)
translates into a substantial number of impressions for young viewers aged 4–24
years, including during the designated children's protection schedule. Reducing
tobacco imagery in films and TV series represents a promising strategy for curbing
youth smoking. However, the current reliance on youth protection schedules is
inadequate. To better protect children from tobacco imagery, policies should
mandate strong anti-tobacco disclaimers preceding programs featuring tobacco
and certificates of No Pay-off for tobacco portrayals. |
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| ISSN: | 1617-9625 |