Eight US states sue Camel cigarettes maker Reynolds Tobacco over magazine ad

Eight states have sued R J Reynolds Tobacco Company (RJR), the maker of Camel cigarettes. The suits, filed on Tuesday 4 December, charge that an advertisement promotion for Camel cigarettes in Rolling Stone magazine violates a 1998 agreement not to use cartoons in its marketing efforts.

The ads for Camels appeared in a nine-page foldout section in the 15 November issue of the music and popular culture magazine. The section, titled ‘Indie Rock Universe’, was designed to look like doodling in a student''s spiral-bound notebook, with drawings of planets made to look like animals and characters. It carried Camel''s name and logo.

The states that filed lawsuits include California, Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Washington attorney general Rob McKenna filed a motion to ban RJR from using cartoons in its ads. The state has demanded more than $3.5 million in sanctions and fines.

In the ’80s and much of the ’90s, the Joe Camel cartoon character represented the brand in print ads. Anti-smoking advocates then charged that because they used cartoons, the advertisements were in effect an appeal to children. In 1998, RJR and other major US cigarette makers agreed to drop cartoon characters from their ads, in a settlement with 45 US states and the District of Colombia.

RJR says the section it sponsored — which did not use the Joe Camel character — was produced by Rolling Stone and that it was unaware of the section''s style. In response, the California attorney general has said that while RJR may not have designed the ad, the company has a duty to watch how its money is spent.

The lawsuits ask the respective state courts to stop Reynolds from running ads using cartoons, to cease distributing a promotional compact disc associated with the ads and seek monetary penalties. A Rolling Stone representative said the magazine had no comment.