Sign the Petition to Keep Smoking out of Youth-Rated Movies Young people, parents, community leaders and health professionals know that major U.S. movie studios could keep smoking out of future youth-rated movies (G, PG, PG-13) using their own voluntary rating system — no government intervention required. Join thousands of people worldwide in signing this global petition asking the studios to do just that.   Youth Tobacco Prevention Grants Available The foundation announced a new grants initiative available in 18 states around the country. "truth® or Consequences Youth Tobacco Prevention Grants Program" will support community-based efforts to prevent youth from smoking. The deadline to apply is Friday, September 7, 2007.   Crew Member Continues to Impact Teens on truth® Tour Returning truth® crew member Jason Thompson has seen the addictive nature of tobacco first-hand. He and the other truth® crew members are traveling across the country with popular music tours to reach teens with the important facts about tobacco use and addiction.

Message From The President Dear Colleague, As the summer movie blockbuster season comes to a close, all of us in tobacco control have witnessed some positive changes in the landscape concerning one of the major public health issues in the United States. Smoking on screen influences nearly 400,000 new youth smokers each year. Earlier in the spring, the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) announced a new ratings clarification to consider smoking as a factor when it rates movies, but the action failed to address the concerns of major public health groups and parents nationwide regarding the strong, research-proven link between images kids see on the silver screen and youth starting to smoke. We have seen the first movie, "Hairspray," tagged with a PG-13 ratings descriptor to include "momentary teen smoking." Read Article ...    Health Groups Call for Removal of Camel No. 9 from Store Shelves Spearheaded by the American Legacy Foundation®, more than 45 groups dedicated to protecting and improving women's health are calling for R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company to remove its Camel No. 9 cigarettes from stores nationwide. Read Article ...    Entertainment Industry-Based Smoking Cessation Program Achieves High Success Rates A smoking cessation program developed specifically for entertainment industry workers who smoke and want to quit achieved high success rates, according to a study in the American Journal of Health Behavior. Half of those who took part in the program quit and stayed quit, which is twice the average success rate of traditional smoking cessation programs. Read Article ...    American Legacy Foundation® Honors Champion of Anti-Tobacco Fight Dr. Stanton Glantz is the first recipient of the American Legacy Foundation Distinguished Professorship in Tobacco Control. Glantz, a life-long anti-tobacco champion, has conducted seminal research linking secondhand smoke to heart disease, as well as research demonstrating that large scale tobacco control programs not only reduce smoking but immediately save lives. Read Article ...    Community Activist Award Request For Nominations Click here to read more about this prestigious award and how you can nominate your colleagues in tobacco control.