Proponents of Tobacco Tax Increase To Air Ad
The campaign in favor of Proposition 86, a measure on the November ballot that would increase the state tobacco tax by $2.60 per pack to fund health programs, this week in Sacramento will air a 30-second advertisement, the Sacramento Bee reports.
In the ad, a narrator says that tobacco companies "will say anything, do anything and spend anything to defeat Prop. 86 because it reduces smoking by increasing cigarette taxes." The ad cites the American Cancer Society, American Heart Association and American Lung Association as sponsors of the initiative. According to the ad, the measure would "reduce teen smoking, prevent premature deaths and save billions in health care costs."
According to a Bee analysis, the ad "leaves viewers with the mistaken impression that the measure would benefit only anti-smoking groups" because it does not indicate that "a huge share -- more than a third -- of the funds" raised by the tax increase would go to hospital emergency departments.
The analysis states that although the groups the ad cites as sponsors of Proposition 86 are supporting the campaign financially, "hospitals are by far the biggest funder of the Yes on 86 campaign" (Benson, Sacramento Bee, 8/22).
KPBS' "KPBS News" on Monday reported on two television advertisements by tobacco companies that began airing this week urging voters to reject Proposition 86, a measure on the November ballot that would increase the state tobacco tax by $2.60 per pack to fund health programs.
The KPBS segment includes comments from Maria Robles, a registered nurse and spokesperson for the Coalition for a Healthy California, which sponsored the initiative (Goldberg, "KPBS News," KPBS, 8/21).
The complete transcript is available online. The complete segment is available online in RealPlayer.