Learning Objectives: Identify benefits of implementing a newspaper-mediated stop smoking campaign.
Abstract: BACKGROUND: Roswell Park Cancer Institute implemented a newspaper mediated stop smoking program in New York State in November 2001. The insert featured human interest stories on smoking cessation, information on cigarette ingredients, methods to stop smoking, and an entry form for a Quit & Win (Q&W) contest offering a cash prize of $1000 to stop smoking.
OBJECTIVE: To describe the number of smokers exposed to the newspaper insert, to compare the characteristics of smokers who did and did not participate in the Q&W contest, and assess the quit rate among smokers who enrolled in the contest.
METHODS: The number of smokers exposed to the newspaper insert was measured through newspaper circulation figures. The characteristics of Q&W participants were compared to the demographic characteristics of smokers from upstate New York as measured in the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey. Four to six months after the Q&W contest, participants were sent a mailed survey to determine their smoking status and methods used to stop smoking, and sales of stop smoking medication sales were assessed.
RESULTS: The newspaper insert reached 519,000 smokers at a cost of $0.28 per exposure. Overall, 3,326 smokers entered the Q&W contest. Contest participants appear on average to include a higher percentage of heavier smokers than the general population. Additional analyses will assess quit rates and demographic characteristics.
CONCLUSIONS: The newspaper insert and Q&W contest appears to be a cost-effective way to motivate large numbers of smokers to take action towards stopping smoking.
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