The anti-smoking flop (Gladwell)
July 24th, 2007 | Published in Culture, Health, Marketing and Advertising, Quotes
The anti-smoking movement has never been louder or more prominent. Yet all signs suggest that among the young the anti-smoking message is backfiring. Between 1993 and 1997, the number of college students who smoke jumped from 22.3% to 28.5%. Between 1991 and 1997, the number of high school students who smoke jumped 32%. Since 1988, in fact, the total number of teen smokers in the United States has risen an extraordinary 73%. There are few public health programs in recent years that have fallen as short of their mission as the war on smoking.
–Malcolm Gladwell, The Tipping Point (2000), p. 221