The 2006 Surgeon General's Report on The Health Consequences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke largely put to rest any lingering doubts that secondhand smoke poses serious health risks to nonsmokers. We sought to assess the amount of news media coverage that the Report generated and the major messages reflected in this coverage.

Methods:

We systematically searched print and broadcast news media for coverage of the Report using several methods and analyzed the content of this coverage.

Results:

The Report generated cover stories and headlines in every major national newspaper; editorials, commentaries, and editorial cartoons in hundreds of national, state, and local newspapers; over 500 newspaper clips reaching more than 25 million readers; and more than 1,700 television and radio hits reaching 192 of 210 market areas and resulting in more than 136 million audience impressions. Several messages consistently recurred in this coverage.

Conclusions:

The 2006 Surgeon General's Report generated extensive print and broadcast news media coverage at the national, state, and local levels. This coverage has had a major impact in raising the visibility of the secondhand smoke issue for the general public and for policymakers in the private and public sectors, and in shaping the way that this issue is framed. Ongoing efforts are underway to extend the life of the Report and to keep the topic of secondhand smoke in the news.