Findings

Research shows that giant tobacco industries see the global poor as a new market waiting to be exploited. This is no surprise; awareness of the dangers of tobacco are rising in the first world. Powerful nations are able to crack down on tobacco advertising, helping prevent it from reaching children. The governments of poorer nations don't have this power and tobacco companies are able to exploit this. In Third World nations, people are exposed to more tobacco advertising than in the US. This is despite there being significantly fewer media outlets available.Tobacco companies have free reign, and use this to drive up smoking rates.

Why This Blog Exists

This blog was created to investigate the link between tobacco use and poverty, specifically how advertising effects tobacco use in the Third World. Tobacco is a dangerous product, one that is responsible for deaths all over the world every year. The World Health Organization links it to "cancer, lung diseases, and cardiovascular diseases", according to the WHO website. Despite the health risks, tobacco use is allowed to seep into poor communities all over the world, aided by advertising. This is an unacceptable state of affairs, and it is one that we hope to be able to address by exposing to the public. Tobacco is dangerous and can't be ignored.