These signals include visible public smoking, the availability of cigarettes to minors, and the widespread promotion and advertising of tobacco products. A 1992 national sample found that 87 percent of the adolescents surveyed could recall recently seeing one or more advertisements for tobacco products. The tobacco industry loses and therefore must replace some two million consumers each year, either because they quit smoking or because they die. Studies show that the vast majority of new consumers will come from the ranks of young people. Intentionally or not, then, successful tobacco marketing influences adolescents.
Print media remain an important source of tobacco advertising.
After automobiles, cigarettes are the most heavily advertised retail product. Especially in inner-city neighborhoods, young people may be repeatedly exposed to outdoor billboards portraying apparent benefits of tobacco use. Increasingly, tobacco companies market their products through promotional activities that reach youth. Cigarette ads visually associate smoking with independence, healthfulness, adventure-seeking, and physical attractiveness themes that appeal to young people. These attractive pictures suggest that smoking is a powerful tool for improving self-image.