Public health versus free speech

GS-II: Public health versus free speech.

Context

Tobacco companies will try their best to prevent pictorial warning on cigarette packages in the U.S.

Fight against Tobacco

It is ten years since U.S. Congress passed the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, but now, the Food and Drug Administration issued a rule that pictorial warnings be carried on cigarette packages and advertisements.
At present, cigarette packages in the U.S. carry only text warnings and only on one side.
Canada was the first to introduce pictorial warnings on cigarette packets in 2001.
The tobacco epidemic is one of the biggest public health threats the world has ever faced, killing more than 8 million people a year around the world. More than 7 million of those deaths are the result of direct tobacco use while around 1.2 million are the result of non-smokers being exposed to second-hand smoke.

Importance of Messaging

Due to their small size and placement text warnings remain invisible and fail to convey the harmful effects of smoking.
Gory pictures are very likely to be noticed, leave a lasting impression of the varied risks of smoking.
They also convey the central message immediately and easily.
A 2017 study based on modelling found that pictorial warnings could reduce the prevalence of smoking in the U.S by 5% by 2020 and up to 10% by 2065.
Canada there was 125 relative reduction in smoking prevalence in just 6 years after graphic images were made mandatory.

Challenges to stricter of tobacco law from USA

Stiff opposition from the tobacco industry on the ground that graphic images violate rights protecting free speech.
The biggest threat that pictorial warnings pose to tobacco companies is in reducing the appeal and consumption of tobacco.
About 30% of young adults in 28 European countries and Canada reported that graphic images made them less likely to start smoking.

Conclusion

Pictorial warnings can turn the power of packing on its head far from brand building, packages with graphic images will become a mobile medium to spread public health messages at no cost to the government.

Source: The Hindu

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