Camel Cigarette Ads were one of the large focuses of the US Government when they investigated the tobacco companies in the 1990's. One of the accusations made against the industry was that they were actively targetting teenagers to get them to smoke, which is odd since Phillip Morris is one of the leading sponsors of the We Card program to help retailers prevent underage smoking.
 

    One of the figures which received so much of the attention was the character of Joe Camel, a cartoon "mascot" of the company which had been around since the late 1960's. In the 1980's and 1990's, Joe Camel became the main symbol for Camel cigarettes and was aimed a at much younger demographic (target audience). During his tenure as the main corporate symbol, the percentage of minors who smoked Camel cigarettes skyrocketted and Joe was forced to "retire" by the Federal Government in 1997. Let's take a look at some of the changes that Camel advertising has gone through in the last twenty years. Camel, a brand of cigarettes done by Phillip Morris, claims they are not targetting younger consumers anymore, but take a look at a promotion found in SPIN magazine. Who do you think this is targetted to and why?
 

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