| 05.21.07: (I don't likey) Camel blows smoke at girls |
 Light and luscious? As light as mountain fresh air and as luscious as lips stung by bumble bees. The new Camel No. 9 cigarettes are packaged in a sleek little black box with hot pink and teal trim to appeal to women (or girls). This new brand rivals masculine cigarette icons like Joe Camel and the Marlboro man. They come in regular (a.k.a. tar) and “menthe” flavors. I bought a pack last week for a project I’m working on for Own Your C, our youth tobacco prevention campaign. They were on special, 2 for 1. I first learned about this new brand when one of my co-workers told me that Camel was hosting “girls night out” events with makeovers at trendy Denver locations. Apparently they had free cigarettes to giveaway too. This caused quite a stir amongst our account services staff, all of whom are deeply involved in Cactus ’ work for the State Tobacco Education & Prevention Partnership . There has been quite a stir in the press about Camel No. 9’s too. They’ve been described as the little black dress of cigarettes. A New York Times article said they have ”a name that evokes women’s fragrances like Chanel No. 19, as well as a song about romance, “Love Potion No. 9.”' A Newsday column said the ads for this “carcinogenic delicacy can be found in traditional bibles of femininity and fashion like Vogue and Glamour magazines.” In fact, that’s how the columnist found out about Camel No. 9 – columnist Lauren Terrazzano was in the waiting room of her doctor’s office. Lauren was seeing her doctor because she has lung cancer. My favorite excerpt from Lauren’s column is: “I wonder if a teenager or a 20-something woman reading the magazines has the will power to stay away from cigarettes, as she is simultaneously bombarded in neighboring pages with messages about being thin and how to lose fat. The fact is, Joe Camel should take a hike. A very long one. In the desert.” (You can find all of Lauren’s columns about her journey with lung cancer on the Newsday website.)  It seems the outrage of anti-tobacco groups about Camel No. 9’s marketing tactics has gained the attention of some politicians on the hill. Last week, an Associated Press article said that Five U.S. senators asked the FTC to investigate what they say are R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co.’s attempts to appeal to teenage girls with ads for its sleekly packaged Camel No. 9 cigarettes. We’ll keep you posted on story developments.  Quote this article on your site
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