CANCER: THE EMPEROR OF ALL MALADIES MEDIA

CANCER: THE EMPEROR OF ALL MALADIES
MEDIA LITERACY – Tobacco, Advertising and Cancer: LESSON PLAN
THEME OF THE LESSON:
Media can be a powerful force in shaping perceptions about products and our own
consumption habits. During the early to mid 20th Century, cigarette advertising was
pervasive and the use of it was high. In the 1970s, a wave of anti-smoking advertising was
released which ultimately changed the public’s perception and use of tobacco. The media
encouraged people to smoke and when scientists proved that smoking was harmful the
media in turn encouraged people to stop.
VIEWING CLIPS:
In viewing these three clips from the documentary, students will understand how media
can influence the habits and attitudes of an audience. The first video clip explains the
pervasiveness of tobacco advertising in the early to mid 20th Century, and the subsequent
rise in tobacco use. The second clip explains how scientists were able to prove that
smoking was detrimental to health, and the third clip shows how the Fairness Doctrine was
used to counter the tobacco ads and the result was a significant decrease in smoking.
Pre-Viewing Questions:
Ask students what they think of cigarette smoking?
Ask students if they think the media influences them? Can they cite examples?
How do they feel about being targets of the media?
Post-Viewing Questions:
How does advertising encourage behaviors? Can you site an example where advertising
influenced you?
Why do you think people continued to smoke in 1964 after the Surgeon General reported
that chemicals, such as those in cigarette smoke, could cause cancer?
Why do you think people smoke today?
Can you think of any products in our society today that we once thought were harmless
and now are starting to question? (Examples might include: high fructose corn syrup,
sugar, and electronic cigarettes.
CLIP 1 – Advertising Cigarettes
EP2 01:33:15 – 01:34:59
Tobacco advertising led to the rise of smoking in the early 20th century
CLIP 2 - Scientific proof
EP2 01:36:09 – 01:40:28
Scientists are finally able to prove the health hazards of smoking
CLIP 3 - Prevention and Fairness Doctrine
EP3 01:41:29 – 01:46:40
Anti-Tobacco ads began running in the late 1960s under the Fairness Doctrine.
EXTENSION ACTIVITIES:
Have students research the role of the tobacco companies and their knowledge of the
effect of tobacco use on health.
Have students create a slide show of historic tobacco ads.
Have students research e-cigarettes and decide if they are “more safe” than traditional
cigarettes. How are they advertised?
Who was “Joe Camel” and why is the character significant?
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:
American Lung Association
http://www.lung.org
US Department of Health and Human Services
http://betobaccofree.hhs.gov
Stanford School of Medicine - research of the impact of tobacco advertising
http://tobacco.stanford.edu/tobacco_main/index.php
The Center for Media and Democracy’s PR Watch – the positive legacy of the fairness
doctrine
http://www.prwatch.org/news/2011/06/10804/rip-fairness-doctrine
EDUCATIONAL STANDARDS:
Benchmarks for Science Literacy
1C/H3a (Grades: 9-12) Progress in science and invention depends heavily on what else is
happening in society.
Next Generation Science Standards
Crosscutting Concepts
Cause and Effect