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RJ Reynolds Will Halt Print Ads

  • AP, Wednesday, November 28, 2007 12 PM

R.J. Reynolds Tobacco says it will not advertise its brands in newspapers or consumer magazines next year. The company has been criticized for both its colorful and feminine Camel No. 9 ads, which appeared in fashion magazines and were seen as cynically aimed at young women, and also for a recent ad in Rolling Stone.

Company spokeswoman Jan Smith says the decision was made sometime before October and was unrelated to the Rolling Stone controversy. She calls the move "an effort by the company to enhance and sharpen the effectiveness and efficiency of its marketing programs." She did, however, say the company had taken into account the protests over the Camel No. 9 ads.

In fact, print ads account for only a tiny portion of what the tobacco industry spends on marketing. But they've been notable because they often appear in magazines side by side with articles promoting women's health.

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