Remember Joe Camel? That “cool” mascot proved troublesome for Camel cigarettes, as all tobacco companies all eventually were barred from targeting kids in their marketing campaign. And now Camel is in hot water (smoke?) again, as a number of health groups are claiming that its new ad campaign for Camel Crush menthol cigarettes is aimed at young people. [More]
cigarettes
NYC Lawmakers Propose Raising Smoking Age To 21
By 4.22.13
The same morning that the U.S. Supreme Court dealt a blow to the tobacco industry’s fight against new warning labels, lawmakers and regulators in New York City have proposed making it illegal for anyone younger than 21 to buy cigarettes. [More]
Supreme Court Agrees: Cigarette Warning Labels Don’t Violate Big Tobacco’s Free Speech
By 4.22.13
For the last several years, the tobacco industry has been fighting a federal law that requires, among other restrictions, cigarette manufacturers to place graphic warning labels on packaging. Big Tobacco may need to finally get with the program, now that the U.S. Supreme Court has rejected the companies’ challenge to the law on the grounds that it violates their First Amendment rights. [More]
If You Can’t Find Cigarettes In NYC Soon It’ll Be Because Mayor Bloomberg Hid Them
By 3.18.13
Just like Chumbawamba, when New York City Mayor Bloomberg gets knocked down, he gets up again. Not one to let that pesky judge’s ruling that his ban on large sugary drinks was invalid bug him, Bloomie’s got his sights retrained on anti-smoking efforts. His plan? Just hide all the cigarettes. [More]
Should Stores That Sell Cigarettes Have To Post Apology From Big Tobacco?
By 12.26.12
Last month, the government’s seemingly interminable lawsuit against the tobacco industry appeared to be nearing something resembling an end, as the judge ruled that cigarette makers must publish apologies for their deception in ads and on packaging. What’s still undecided is whether stores must also post the apology. [More]
Would $81 For A Pack Of Cigarettes Put An End To Smoking?
By 4.24.12
While lawmakers here in the U.S. have developed a habit in recent years of raising taxes on cigarettes as a way to curb smoking while increasing tax revenue from those who continue to inhale, officials in New Zealand are giving some thought to what they would need to charge in order to make people quit smoking once and for all. [More]
Appeals Court Rules Graphic Cigarette Labels Don't Violate Free Speech
By 3.20.12
The latest battle over those graphic anti-smoking labels on cigarette packaging has been won by the FDA, after a federal appeals court ruled yesterday that requiring the warnings does not violate tobacco companies’ First Amendment right to free speech. [More]
Judge: Graphic Cigarette Warning Labels Violate Right To Free Speech
By 2.29.12
Remember those graphic, sometimes gory, cigarette warning labels the FDA came up with? Well, a U.S. District Judge has sided with the tobacco companies and ruled that the warnings violate cigarette-makers’ right to free speech. [More]
Feds Fight Big Tobacco Over Graphic Anti-Smoking Labels
By 2.2.12
Cigarette makers appear to be winning the legal battle against the federal government’s requirement that large graphic images of the consequences of smoking be displayed on all packages of cigarettes. The rule was supposed to take effect next year, but a U.S. District judge has put that plan on hold until the issue is resolved. [More]
Should Smokers Have To Pay The Full Tax If They Roll Their Own Cigarettes?
By 1.3.12
Since state and local governments began slapping heavy taxes on cigarettes, a number of smokers have managed to pay less by buying loose tobacco and rolling their own. But as a growing number of stores have begun offering free-to-use roll-your-own machines that take the loose material and spit out a pile of smokes that look like they came straight out of the carton, some lawmakers are crying foul. [More]
Unable To Get Nicotine Fix, Southwest Passenger Resorts To Throwing Peanuts & Pretzels At Flight Attendants
By 7.14.11
A passenger on board a Southwest Airlines flight from L.A. to Salt Lake City was arrested earlier this week after he allegedly hurled bags of snacks at flight attendants to express his frustration over being unable to inhale fumes from an electronic cigarette. [More]
FDA Unveils New Tobacco Warning Labels For Teens To Laugh At While They Smoke
By 6.21.11
Last fall, the Food & Drug Administration announced they would be requiring tobacco packaging to carry larger and more graphic warning labels. And because our governmental agencies move like quicksilver, it only took about seven months for the FDA to finalize the nine images that will soon decorate your pack of Kools. [More]
Report: West Virginia Cheapest State To Score Cigarettes, NY Most Expensive
By 6.16.11
Smokers everywhere complain about taxes tacked on to cigarettes, but those in some states have far more reason to complain than others. An unscientific but seemingly thorough spot check found that New Yorkers have to fork over $11.90 for a pack of Marlboro Reds, while West Virginians need only part with $4.74. [More]
Why Quitting Smoking Makes You Fat
By 6.10.11
If you’ve ever tried to give up a smoking habit, you might have found that you tend to pack on a little extra body weight, too. Now, scientists say they’ve found out why. [More]
FDA Panel Recommends Ban On Menthol Cigarettes
By 3.18.11
If you like your cigarettes minty fresh, you might want to start stocking up now. Earlier today an FDA panel announced that a ban on menthol smokes would be a good thing for the public health. [More]
Trick Yourself To Quit Smoking
By 3.3.11
The most effective business model is to physically addict your customers. It’s a lesson smokers know all too well, and a reason many smokers are in a perpetual, unsuccessful state of “quitting.” [More]
MGM Grand No Longer Charging $20/Night To Get A Non-Smoking Room
By 2.17.11
A couple weeks ago, we told you about how the MGM Grand Las Vegas had begun charging $20 per night to guarantee non-smoking rooms to guests. That didn’t go over well with the general public and now the resort tells Consumerist that it’s rescinded the policy. [More]
NYC Bans Smoking At Parks, Beaches
By 2.3.11
The smokers of New York City will soon have even fewer places to light up this summer after the Big Apple’s city council voted to expand the existing ban on smoking in restaurants and bars to include, beaches, parks, boardwalks and other public spaces. [More]
