As discussed above, since the end of the Second World War the percentage number of adult male smokers has nearly halved, while the percentage number of adult female smokers has shown comparatively little variation. Therefore it is not surprising that the targeting of women, and particularly young women (who would be customers for longer), increased in prominence in tobacco advertising. The fact that the female market has grown in importance for the tobacco manufacturers is acknowledged by the industry.(77)
Although tobacco advertising was not intended for women initially, it was not unusual for women to be portrayed in cigarette advertisements designed to appeal to men.(78) The first advertisement in the United States showing a woman smoking appeared in 1919.(79) It is not clear when they first appeared in Australia, but certainly by the 1930s, advertisements showing women smoking and praising the qualities of tobacco were not uncommon. The behaviour was reinforced by widespread smoking by movie heroines,(79) with screen idols such as Greta Garbo, Lana Turner, Betty Grable, Jean Harlow, Lauren Bacall, Bette Davis and Marlene Dietrich doing much to glamourise the image of smoking pre- and post-war. It is not clear how much this was deliberately fostered by the tobacco companies, but certainly, many of the starlets who smoked on screen, also appeared in cigarette advertisements.(80,81)
The tobacco manufacturers encouraged women to adopt smoking with promises of glamour and attractiveness, and reassurance that smoking was not only an appropriate but a desirable female behaviour. The American brand 'Lucky Strike' even managed to persuade the fashion industry to feature green one year, making the green Lucky Strike packs an appealing fashion accessory.(79) Advertisements aimed at women tended to boast of mildness of flavour, and featured pastel coloured and exotically tipped cigarettes in attractive tins that were designed to appeal to feminine tastes.(3)
The outbreak of the Second World War brought with it many social changes, and a further increase in women's smoking rates.(3) In the United States smoking was portrayed by the tobacco industry as a gesture of patriotism, advertisements showing film stars in uniform smoking and simultaneously promoting war bonds.(79) The picture was different for Australian women, however, as like many other commodities, tobacco became scarce during the war, and women at home were encouraged to sacrifice their cigarettes for the boys at the Front.(3)
Over the decades the fashions altered, but otherwise little changed in cigarette advertising aimed at women. Smoking has been inextricably linked with perennially successful themes -- style, sex appeal, social distinction and more recently, professional success and emancipation. Although not available in Australia, probably the world's most famous women's brand is 'Virginia Slims', the clever promotions for which have paradoxically juxtaposed women's emancipation with women's enslavery to the desire for slimness (and of course, addiction). In Australia, a number of brands have been targeted specifically at women, especially Alpine, and the 'designer' brands like St Moritz, Yves St Laurent, Cartier, Dunhill and Vogue.
The clear interest of the tobacco industry in attracting women was evident from their high levels of advertising in women's magazines prior to the ban on advertising in magazines and newspapers which commenced on 28 December 1990. Cigarettes were consistently among the most advertised products, if not the most advertised product, among the most popular women's magazines. A small number of publications refused to carry tobacco advertising prior to the ban as a matter of principle.(82)
Research has shown that while women's magazines were heavy carriers of tobacco advertising, they provided little information on the health effects of smoking. This was particularly significant, given that for many women, they are also a major source of leisure reading and information on lifestyle issues.(83) An Australian study which examined 11 different magazines (nine of which carried tobacco advertising) between 1979 and 1986 reported 'a severe deficiency in the reporting of the hazards of smoking', and suggested that the financial relationship between the magazines and their tobacco advertisers was responsible for this(82) (see also Chapter 15, Section 10). Now that this advertising is no longer possible, it will be very interesting to see if women's magazines begin to better inform their readership of the health dangers of smoking.
Chapter 15 provides a discussion on the evolution of tobacco advertising in Australia, its effectiveness, and the response of the tobacco companies to various forms of restriction.