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Surge Summary: It seems parts of the entertainment industry are once again portraying smoking as a glamorous and attractive habit. This is a change of policy — and some critics are calling out influential media corporations on this trend.
by The Parents Television and Media Council
LOS ANGELES (July 11, 2023) – The Parents Television and Media Council (PTC) is calling on Warner Bros. Discovery to stop ignoring its policy that aims to reduce or eliminate smoking and tobacco use in its shows and films, as it has done with youth-targeted program, The Idol. The Idol frequently shows the main character, Jocelyn, smoking cigarettes.
“Warner Bros. Discovery is serving glamorous portrayals of smoking to youth audiences in The Idol in violation of its own policy that states tobacco depictions should be reduced or eliminated. This is outrageous and the company must do better for the sake of youth who are inevitably watching and absorbing these harmful messages,” said Melissa Henson, vice president of the Parents Television and Media Council.
“The entertainment industry at large is glamorizing tobacco use in popular TV shows and films,” Henson said, pointing to an article in
The Guardian revealing popular TV shows and films like HBO’s
And Just Like That, The Idol, Netflix’s
Russian Doll, Stranger Things, The Queen’s Gambit, The Umbrella Academy, along with 28 (out of 39) Academy Award nominated films in 2023 depict smoking or tobacco use.
The Guardian also pointed out that in 2020, cigarette sales rose in the U.S. for the first time in 20 years.
“As recent as 2019, Netflix publicly recognized smoking’s harms and potential impact on young viewers and pledged to reduce smoking portrayals. So why is it continuing to allow smoking to be glamorized in its shows?” Henson said.
“The harms of smoking have not changed. The entertainment industry must do its part to lead people away from harm and therefore must quit its addiction to tobacco portrayals.”
The Parents Television and Media Council® (www.parentstv.org®) is a non-partisan education organization advocating responsible entertainment. It was founded in 1995 to ensure that children are not constantly assaulted by sex, violence and profanity on television and in other media. This national grassroots organization has more than 1.4 million members, and works with television producers, broadcasters, networks and sponsors in an effort to stem the flow of harmful and negative messages targeted to children. The PTC™ also works with elected and appointed government officials to enforce broadcast decency standards. Most importantly, the PTC produces critical research and publications documenting the dramatic increase in sex, violence and profanity in entertainment. This information is provided free of charge so parents can make informed viewing choices for their own families. Visit the new PTC Watchdog Blog at http://www.parentstv.org/blog/. Follow the PTC on Twitter: @ThePTC.
The views here are those of the author and not necessarily Daily Surge.
Image: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/; https://www.publicdomainpictures.net/en/view-image.php?image=135019&picture=smoking
Don’t let Leftist social media shut us out! Sign up for Daily Surge’s daily email blast… it’ll keep you updated on each day’s Daily Surge new columns. Go to dailysurge.com and sign up under “Free Newsletter” on the right side of the page, one-third of the way down. It’s easy! And like it says, it’s free!
Surge Summary: It seems parts of the entertainment industry are once again portraying smoking as a glamorous and attractive habit. This is a change of policy — and some critics are calling out influential media corporations on this trend.
by The Parents Television and Media Council
LOS ANGELES (July 11, 2023) – The Parents Television and Media Council (PTC) is calling on Warner Bros. Discovery to stop ignoring its policy that aims to reduce or eliminate smoking and tobacco use in its shows and films, as it has done with youth-targeted program, The Idol. The Idol frequently shows the main character, Jocelyn, smoking cigarettes.
“Warner Bros. Discovery is serving glamorous portrayals of smoking to youth audiences in The Idol in violation of its own policy that states tobacco depictions should be reduced or eliminated. This is outrageous and the company must do better for the sake of youth who are inevitably watching and absorbing these harmful messages,” said Melissa Henson, vice president of the Parents Television and Media Council.
“The entertainment industry at large is glamorizing tobacco use in popular TV shows and films,” Henson said, pointing to an article in The Guardian revealing popular TV shows and films like HBO’s And Just Like That, The Idol, Netflix’s Russian Doll, Stranger Things, The Queen’s Gambit, The Umbrella Academy, along with 28 (out of 39) Academy Award nominated films in 2023 depict smoking or tobacco use. The Guardian also pointed out that in 2020, cigarette sales rose in the U.S. for the first time in 20 years.“As recent as 2019, Netflix publicly recognized smoking’s harms and potential impact on young viewers and pledged to reduce smoking portrayals. So why is it continuing to allow smoking to be glamorized in its shows?” Henson said.
“The harms of smoking have not changed. The entertainment industry must do its part to lead people away from harm and therefore must quit its addiction to tobacco portrayals.”
The Parents Television and Media Council® (www.parentstv.org®) is a non-partisan education organization advocating responsible entertainment. It was founded in 1995 to ensure that children are not constantly assaulted by sex, violence and profanity on television and in other media. This national grassroots organization has more than 1.4 million members, and works with television producers, broadcasters, networks and sponsors in an effort to stem the flow of harmful and negative messages targeted to children. The PTC™ also works with elected and appointed government officials to enforce broadcast decency standards. Most importantly, the PTC produces critical research and publications documenting the dramatic increase in sex, violence and profanity in entertainment. This information is provided free of charge so parents can make informed viewing choices for their own families. Visit the new PTC Watchdog Blog at http://www.parentstv.org/blog/. Follow the PTC on Twitter: @ThePTC.
The views here are those of the author and not necessarily Daily Surge.
Image: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/; https://www.publicdomainpictures.net/en/view-image.php?image=135019&picture=smokingStay in the loop on killer content,
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