Tobacco ads explode ahead of smoking ban

If you’ve picked up a magazine recently, you probably noticed new seals which, when broken, take readers straight to a cigarette advertisement in the middle of the publication. As in, you’re forced to see a cigarette ad before anything else in the magazine. [WHAT IS THIS I CAN’T EVEN] In a press release today via the Health Ministry, reps from the National Tobacco Control Program say this is no accident: “Knowing that the ban goes into effect in March 2012, we are witnessing an increase in tobacco marketing on ATL [above the line] mediums [such as TV and radio] especially on billboards.

At the same time, there is a noticeable increase in below the line and indirect advertisements, such as the camel sculpture on Gemmayzeh's steps a few weeks back, in addition to the new magazines wrappers with tobacco product's related designs and color codes. Under the new law, all forms of tobacco advertising and promotion will be illegal, including billboards, magazine ads and tobacco company-sponsored events.

The press release included this reminder, a clear message to tobacco promoters: “Abiding by the law is considered official once published in the national Gazette and becomes the responsibility of all related stakeholders to be aware and abide by it.” In sum, Lebanon seems to be taking the new ban super serious, you guys. So there, you’ve been warned.