"Selling Sin" in a Hostile Environment: A Comparison of Ukrainian and American Tobacco Advertising Strategies in Magazines

Olesya Venger, Marquette University
Joyce Wolburg, Marquette University

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Originally published in Journal of Current Issues and Research in Advertising, Volume 30, No. 2 (Fall 2008).

Abstract

Given that “sin” products must navigate different regulatory environments, it is important to compare cigarette advertising across cultures. Using text analysis, this study examined the message strategies and the ideological beliefs in cigarette advertising in American and Ukrainian magazines within the context of their different regulatory environments. The messages across the two countries differed in their use of creative appeals to ego, social needs, and sensory pleasure as well as their adherence to regulation. Many of the Ukrainian campaigns were reminiscent of earlier American campaigns and offer unique comparisons of cultures that are at different places historically, economically, and ideologically.