Lesson Plan
Freedom to Smoke
Overview
In this lesson, students explore their beliefs and values about
independence – and how cigarette advertising exploits
peoples’ desires for greater freedom. Students identify the
activities, lifestyles and role models that define the
“independent” man and woman in our society. They then
analyze ads that associate smoking with images of
independence.
Level: Grades 5-8
About the Author
Adapted from Smoke-Free
for Life, from the Nova
Scotia Department of
Health, Drug Dependency
and Tobacco Control Unit
Learning Outcomes
Students will demonstrate:
• an understanding of the marketing strategies used by
the tobacco industry in order to sell cigarettes
• an understanding of how the tobacco industry
capitalizes on the needs of young people for
independence and freedom, as a means of marketing
cigarettes to them
• an awareness of how kids respond to these strategies
Preparation and Materials
Review the teaching backgrounder:
• Freedom in the Shape of a Cigarette (educational backgrounder)
• For ideas on how to conduct discussion groups on this topic, see Guidelines
for Peer-Led Discussion Groups.
• Copy handout: Are You Talking to Me? (educational handout) – one for each
student.
Photocopy or create overheads of the following tobacco ads for the group
assignments:
• Newport Pleasure (educational handout)
• Camel – Pleasure to Burn (educational handout)
• Merit (educational handout)
• Lucky Strike: American Original (educational handout)
• Virginia Slims: Find Your Own Voice (educational handout)
• Have ready large sheets of paper for brainstorming
Procedure
Class Discussion: 10 min
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Make a sketch of a road on the board. Discuss adolescence as a transition
from dependence to independence.
Annotate the diagram of the road with the students’ ideas about how this
transition progresses.
In what ways are you dependent when you begin junior high school? (You live
at home, depend on parents for food and clothes, can’t always choose what
© 2002 Media Awareness Network For individual class use only. Republishing in any other format requires the permission of the Media Awareness Network
Freedom to Smoke / Grades 5-8 / Lesson Plan / Page 1
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you want to do, wear, etc.)
What independence do you gain as you travel through school? (You might get
a part-time job, which gives you more money and therefore more
independence; parents might let you make more of your own decisions; you
might learn how to drive.)
When you leave school and get a job, will you be completely independent?
(You will still have other responsibilities to employers, relationships, and
society at large.)
Does progress towards independence end when you leave home, or does it
keep going? (Adults also wish for greater freedom and independence, in the
form of more free time, more control over their lives and relationships, more
money, more physical vitality, etc.)
Small Group Discussion: 15 min
•
Divide the class into groups. Appoint a note-taker for each group and
distribute large sheets of paper. Review brainstorming guidelines: all answers
are accepted without judgement, and everyone has a chance to participate.
Ask the groups to brainstorm these questions: In our society, what does
“independence” mean for women? What does it mean for men? Answers could
include qualities, activities, lifestyles, and role models. Ideas are recorded by
the note-taker.
Class Discussion: 5 min
• Share the results of the brainstorming.
Activity
• Using photocopies or overheads of the tobacco ads included in this lesson, or
collected magazine ads, have students complete the assignment Are You
Talking to Me?
• Have students discuss their answers.
Evaluation
• Completed assignment forms.
Note: More lessons about tobacco are listed in Teaching About Tobacco: Guidelines for
Teachers on the Media Awareness Network Web site.
© 2002 Media Awareness Network For individual class use only. Republishing in any other format requires the permission of the Media Awareness Network
Freedom to Smoke / Grades 5-8 / Lesson Plan / Page 2
Teaching Background Information Sheet #1
Freedom in the Shape of a Cigarette
Freedom and independence are recurring themes in tobacco promotion. The tobacco
industry created and reinforced images of the smoker as the lone cowboy, the
emancipated woman, the daredevil sportster. This theme is especially appealing to
adolescents, who are reaching towards independence and looking for ways to project
that image.
The campaign is less about masculinity than about
independence, self-reliance, and freedom from authority.
The cigarette brands most popular with kids are those whose
images symbolize self-reliance. Citizens of Marlboro Country
have no parents, teachers, brothers, bullies or bosses. They
epitomize independence and stand in stark contrast to the real
Wild West. There's not even a sheriff in Marlboro Country.
Richard Pollay: Editorial, Advertising and Cigarettes, ARHP, 1996
The tobacco industry's own research reports and internal documents show that the
association between smoking and independence has been carefully manufactured
and fine-tuned. In a 1982 internal strategy document, R. J. Reynolds-Macdonald Inc.
described how it had positioned Export A to be the brand of choice for adolescent
boys:
Very young starter smokers choose Export A because it provides
them with an instant badge of masculinity, appeals to their
rebellious nature and establishes their position amongst their
peers . . . The Export imagery will dimensionalize (sic) the breed
of men who are masculine, independent, adventurous and
possess the qualities of natural leadership . . . Women are
attracted to these men because of their youthful virility,
independence and spirit of adventure.
Richard Pollay and Anne Lavack:
"The Targeting of Youths by Cigarette Marketers:
Archival Evidence on Trial,"
Advances in Consumer Research 20 (1993)
Export A's closest rival is Players. Imperial Tobacco Limited (ITL), the makers of
Players cigarettes, compared its imagery with that of Export A. Both brands are
targeted to "starter males," and both use ads that feature strong, hardy young men.
ITL's report, however, asserts that Players' images are more in tune with the
subtleties of contemporary definitions of independence and masculinity.
Players Image of a Smoker
Chooses to be alone Masculine/softer man Okay to
show feelings Can get along with women Better
job/steady worker Adventurous, tries new things
Independent, strong-willed
vs. Export A Image of a Smoker
Being a loner Macho/rugged Can't
show feelings No women Working
class, blue collar Daredevil Doesn't
care about society
Table excerpted from ITL's 1985 report "Project Stereo." Reproduced in Pollay and Lavack, ibid.
Freedom to Smoke / Teaching Backgrounder #1 / © 2002 Media Awareness Network
Player's modernized its image with ads associating the brand
with recreational sports such as hang gliding, mountain climbing
and wind surfing. Export A was left behind with a blue-collar
truck driver image... it fails to capture the aspirations of the
young.
"Export A Ads are Extremely Expert, Eh?" Filter Tips,
Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada, 1998
The tobacco industry also deploys that cherished notion of freedom when defending
itself against consumer groups. It claims that everyone should be "free" to choose to
smoke, and "free" to smoke wherever they wish. The irony is that the "free smoker"
is a blatant contradiction of terms:
The nicotine industry [portrays] public health advocates as anti-smoking
fanatics who want to tell everyone what to do, and setting them against the
courageous, independent, free-thinking smoker.
There's an extraordinary billion-dollar public relations campaign going on that
wants you think that freedom comes in the shape of a cigarette. The truth, of
course, is that smoking is a dangerous addiction, deliberately promoted by a
callous industry that cares only for profit. If you smoke, you're not expressing
your individuality – you're allowing yourself to be manipulated by a very
powerful industry.
Jean Kilbourne in the video Pack of Lies ( Foundation for Media Education)
What you see is the opposite of what you get. We see images of
independence, not the reality of addiction. We see pictures of health, while
the reality is too often disease and death.
Pollay, ibid, 1996
Cigarette companies also defend the democratic principle of freedom of expression,
in the form of freedom to advertise their product. In fact, however, the same
companies have been responsible for suppressing information in the media, by
flexing their advertising muscle.
Tobacco manufacturers have long wielded the power to censor
articles in newspapers and magazines. Now, with more people
[in the U.S.] calling for a ban on cigarette ads, the
manufacturers are in the ironic position of equating their
products with freedom of expression.
Adbusters (Winter 1994)
Reprinted with permission from Smoke-Free for Life, a smoking prevention
curriculum supplement from the Nova Scotia Department of Health, Drug
Dependency and Tobacco Control Unit, 1996. Adapted and updated, 2002.
Freedom to Smoke / Teaching Backgrounder #1 / © 2002 Media Awareness Network
Teaching Background Information Sheet #2
Guidelines For Peer-Led Discussion Groups
Research indicates that teacher-trained peer group leaders contribute to the
effectiveness of tobacco prevention programs in the schools.
Many students feel more comfortable talking about personal and social issues in the
presence of peer leaders. The discussion can be more candid, more probing, and
more self-regulating. In turn, peer leaders have the opportunity to take on a
leadership role and to act as role models for other students.
1. Before the first lesson, ask students to select group leaders. A group leader must
be respected by his or her classmates, and the leader must accept the position. Note
that students who smoke can also be selected as group leaders, since they have
valuable experience to contribute. Following are two selection methods.
A. Ask the class to nominate six students (three boys and three girls) as discussion
group leaders. Each student writes six names on a slip of paper. Collect the
nominations and tally them. You should end up with at least one group leader for
every four to six students. "Extra" leaders can be used as alternates on days when
one of the other leaders is absent.
Or
B. Divide the class into groups first, and let each group choose its own leader.
Students can form their own groups by selecting a partner and then joining another
pair, to a maximum of 6 students in each group. On days when some students are
absent small groups can combine. Everyone in the group must agree on the choice of
discussion leader.
2. Schedule a time when the group leaders can meet with you for 20-minute training
session. Copy the "Group Leader Guidelines" on the following page.
3. At the meeting, tell the group leaders that they will be helping you with the
Smoke-Free for Life unit. Explain why this unit is important – the decision of whether
or not to use tobacco will have a big effect on the rest of their classmates' lives. As
group leaders, their job isn't to convince students that they should or shouldn't
smoke but to help guide the group discussion and activities, so that everyone has a
chance to come to their own conclusions. Express your confidence in the group
leaders' ability, and your support for their role.
4. Distribute the "Group Leader Guidelines." Go over each point. If time, do a "dry
run" of a lesson activity.
5. Plan a brief follow-up meeting after the lesson, to give the group leaders a chance
to talk about their experience and discuss problems.
See, for e.g., Thomas J. Glynn, School Programs to Prevent Smoking: The National Cancer
Institute Guide to Strategies that Succeed (National Cancer Institute, 1990) or, Health Canada
includes the use of teacher-led peer assistants in its checklist of "Criteria for In-Class
Instruction" section C. Delivery, (Improving the Odds: Educator's Resource, A Tobacco Use
Prevention Resource for School Aged Youth 10-14, 1995).
Sources: The PAL Smoking Prevention Program, Health Canada. Tobacco-Free Teens: The Minnesota
Smoking Prevention Program.
Freedom to Smoke / Teaching Backgrounder #2 /© 2002 Media Awareness Network
Group Leader Guidelines
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Wait until everyone is settled and paying attention before you start the group
activity or discussion.
Make sure everyone understands the assignment.
Encourage students not to interrupt each other, and to listen to what is being
said.
Help everyone in your group to participate. If someone isn't saying anything,
ask for their opinion about what is being discussed.
Keep an overview of what the group is trying to accomplish. Try not to let the
discussion stray too far off track. Bring it back to the topic with a question
directed at someone in the group.
Let the group come to its own conclusions. Your can offer your own opinions
and ideas, but don't dominate the discussion or feel that you have to come up
with all the answers.
Respect everyone's opinions, and everyone's feelings. Encourage the group to
do the same.
Good luck and thanks for your help!
Freedom to Smoke / Teaching Backgrounder #2 /© 2002 Media Awareness Network
Student Handout #1
Are You Talking to Me?
Take a good look at the cigarette ads you see. The tobacco companies have a lot to
gain if they can convince you to smoke – once you’re addicted, chances are that
you’ll be paying them money every week for the rest of your life. So their advertising
people spend a lot of time thinking up ads that will work: ads that will make you
think you’ll be more independent, cool, sexy – whatever it is you want to be – if you
smoke their brand. So get smart and stay one step ahead of their game. You’ll
breathe easier if you do. And you’ll find more creative ways to spend your money,
and your life.
Consider and then answer these questions for each of the sample tobacco
advertisements selected by you or your teacher:
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How would you describe this person or persons? (At least 4 characteristic
adjectives or phrases.)
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What is the underlying message?
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Who might be attracted to this ad?
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How do you feel about this ad?
Reprinted with permission from Smoke-Free for Life, a smoking prevention curriculum
supplement from the Nova Scotia Department of Health, Drug Dependency and Tobacco
Control Unit, 1996. Updated February 2002.
Freedom to Smoke / Student Handout #1 /© 2002 Media Awareness Network
Student Handout #2
Freedom to Smoke: Newport
Freedom to Smoke / Student Handout #2 /© 2002 Media Awareness Network
Student Handout # 3
Freedom to Smoke: Camel
Freedom to Smoke / Student Handout #3 /© 2002 Media Awareness Network
Student Handout #4
Freedom to Smoke: Merit
Freedom to Smoke / Student Handout #4 /© 2002 Media Awareness Network
Student Handout #5
Freedom to Smoke: Lucky Strike
Freedom to Smoke / Student Handout #5 /© 2002 Media Awareness Network
Student Handout #6
Freedom to Smoke: Virginia Slims
Freedom to Smoke / Student Handout #6 /© 2002 Media Awareness Network