The Cost of Industry Targeting and Advertising

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In our capitalist model, many times companies are rewarded with little to no regulation in the name of creating American jobs and great profits. But the other side of this is that it can also lead to great, almost irreversible harm being done to people. One of those groups of people are the American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN). What I want to focus on is the industry targeting and advertising aimed at the Native population and the lasting effects. Why do Native Americans use more tobacco/e-cigarette than any other group? Yes, there is cultural significance to tobacco use among some tribes, but the AI/AN people have the highest tobacco/e-cigarette use of any other race in the United States, why is that?


Native Americans have different uses for tobacco which include: prayer, healing, and ceremonies. According to the Minnesota Department of Health, the Tribal methods of making tobacco are much different than what is sold on store shelves, “it is carefully handpicked and offered respectfully”. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) “Traditional tobacco has been used by American Indian nations for centuries as a medicine with cultural and spiritual importance”. What has been allowed to happen is the targeting and advertising to these communities by companies exploiting their culture to make a profit.





According to a National Youth Tobacco Survey in 2019, 16.1% of AI/AN middle school students and 40.4% of AI/AN high school students are e-cigarette users. When compared to the overall percentage of high school users, 27.5%, that is a significantly higher rate. What this shows is that the tobacco/e-cigarette industry has done a tremendous amount of work to penetrate the AI/AN community and make their products commonly available. E-cigarette company Juul was found to have offered steep discounts Native American groups while making the claim that their product is much safer than traditional tobacco products, according to a congressional investigation in 2020. In the same investigation, it’s stated, “testimony from Rae O’Leary exposed that JUUL was targeting Native Americans as guinea pigs for its product”. 


With all of this current and historical targeting of the AI/AN population, it is no surprise that they suffer from higher smoking-related deaths when compared to all other races. This is where we the students come in. Most of us are graduating, or close to graduation. The business, financial, and marketing skills that we’ve developed in our time here at college should be used carefully after we move on from university life. We’ve been prepared to make ourselves valuable to companies and businesses looking to make profits. This is not inherently evil, but we must take a considered approach to who and when we choose to market products to because it can leave a very damaging impact. 

   


American Indians/Alaska Natives Tobacco Use. CDC - https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/disparities/american-indians/index.htm#:~:text=Traditional%20tobacco%20is%20tobacco%20and,with%20cultural%20and%20spiritual%20importance.


Minnesota Department of Health - https://www.health.state.mn.us/communities/tobacco/initiatives/tfc/stories/201905/index.html


https://truthinitiative.org/research-resources/targeted-communities/tobacco-use-american-indianalaska-native-community


Congressional Oversight Investigation - https://oversight.house.gov/sites/democrats.oversight.house.gov/files/2020-02-04.RK%20Memo%20re%20JUUL.pdf

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