TOBACCO ADVERTISING IN SOUTH-AFRICA WITH SPECIFIC REFERENCE TO MAGAZINES

Rationale. A ban on tobacco advertising forms an integral component of tobacco control strategies, and needs to be considered in South Afric a as a matter of urgency. Objectives. To obtain baseline data on tobac co advertising expenditure in the South African media, and to compare brands used to target different groups in magazines. Methods. Advertis ing expenditure (totals and tobacco-related) for 1991 and 1993 was obt ained from Adindex. Ten magazines, each with circulations of over 100 000, directed at four different target groups, were selected. For 3 mo nths in 1993, total and tobacco advertising expenditure, brand placeme nt and magazine demographics were determined. Results. Tobacco-related expenditure constituted 4,8% of the R3 billion spent on advertising i n 1993. Print (including magazines) and radio together accounted for 7 2% of all tobacco advertising, while cinema and outdoor advertising we re most dependent on the tobacco industry for revenue. Annualised adve rtising spending for the 10 magazines reached an estimated R230 millio n, of which tobacco 'adspend' accounted for 6,4%. The highest percenta ge of tobacco adspend (20,3%) was for a men's 'soft-porn' magazine. Fo r 26 of 30 issues studied, tobacco adverts were on the back cover. Bra nd targeting was evident in black, women's, and family magazines. Ther e was not a single feature article on the adverse effects of smoking o n health in any of the magazines during the 3-month period. Only 2 mag azines had single sentences in their health columns mentioning that sm oking was bad for health. In a third magazine, one opinion piece devot ed a full page to criticising the anti-tobacco lobby! Conclusion. Toba cco advertising, through radio and outdoor advertising, reaches childr en and illiterate communities in peri-urban and rural areas. Tobacco a dvertising in magazines targets specific consumers, such as blacks and women. For most magazines, tobacco adspend constitutes less than 10% of the total. A total ban on tobacco advertising in the media in gener al and certainly in magazines would not have adverse economic effects and would promote health.