Washington, D.C. — The National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) is urging the five creative Guilds involved in producing and developing streamed movies and programs to take action to protect young viewers from tobacco imagery.

“The Guilds’ assistance and support is critical to . . . stopping the renormalization and glamorization of tobacco use. We look forward to opening discussions with you about ways the creative community can protect children, while maintaining artistic integrity,” reads the letter signed by 43 attorneys general and sent to Hollywood’s creative Guilds.

NAAG is asking the Guilds to use their collective influence to persuade members of the creative community to depict tobacco imagery responsibly and to encourage streaming companies to:

• Adopt best practices that steer young viewers away from content with tobacco imagery by, among other things, excluding such imagery in future content targeting children;
• Recommend and promote only tobacco-free titles for children and families;
• Mitigate the historic and cumulative impact of watching tobacco imagery by running strong anti-tobacco spots, especially before content with smoking or vaping;
• Display prominent and forceful tobacco warnings before content with tobacco imagery; and
• Offer effective parental controls, so families may be empowered to choose smoke-free content.

The coalition’s letters to the creative community follow a similar action from August 2019 in which 43 attorneys general sent letters urging the major companies in the video on demand industry to limit tobacco imagery in their content.

Letters were sent to Directors Guild of America, Producers Guild of America, Screenwriters Guild of America, Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, and International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees.

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