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June 16, 2008
Movie industry flak makes questionable claim on smoking in movies
 I saw an absurd comment by a movie industry PR flak in today's New York Times story Physicians’ Group Furious at Cigars in 'Hulk' Movie. The story responds to this news release from the American Medical Association's volunteer arm. In the New York Times, here's the section quoting the PR flak:
The Motion Picture Association in May 2007 said it would for the first time consider portrayals of smoking alongside sex and violence in assessing the suitability of movies for young viewers. While not addressing "The Incredible Hulk" specifically, Seth Oster, the association's communications chief, defended the effectiveness of the policy. "The vast majority of films with even a single image of smoking are already rated R or higher," he said. I knew this was ludicrous. Here's an excerpt from a University of California at San Francisco School of Medicine report: One year later: Are MPAA's tobacco labels protecting audiences? Of the movies that achieved "Top Ten" box office ranking for at least a week, released in the twelve months after the MPAA’s May 10, 2007 announcement, 61 percent (95/155) featured tobacco including: 38 percent of G and PG movies (13/34)58 percent of PG-13 movies (39/67) 80 percent of R-rated movies (43/54).
In all, 55 percent (52/95) of top box office movies with smoking released in 2007-8 were youth-rated G, PG or PG-13.
More from the PIRG-backed Smoke Free Movies.
Posted by Ed Mierzwinski at June 16, 2008 03:14 PM
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