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Youth-Targeted E-cigarette Marketing in the US.

OBJECTIVES
The purpose of this project was to explore the extent to which e-cigarette advertisements use youth-appealing content.


METHODS
A sample of e-cigarette video ads (N = 154) were coded by 3 independent coders using the content appealing to youth (CAY) index, which measures over 40 youth-appealing features. To calculate a total CAY score for each ad, scores were normalized and summed such that a higher score represented the presence of more youth-appealing elements.


RESULTS
All ads included some youth-appealing content, with frequent use of emotional appeals, including happiness (68%), friendship (41%), sex (24%), and success (24%). Over half featured animation. However, product appeals, known to be disliked by youth, were also prevalent. Eighty-seven percent used a direct appeal to e-cigarettes' value over tobacco cigarettes; 66% mentioned product composition; and 40% mentioned health.


CONCLUSIONS
Given the unregulated context in the US, e-cigarette marketing currently contains many features that may be particularly appealing to youth.