Announcing the 2015 Photo Contest Winners

Congratulations to our winners in Counter Tobacco’s fourth annual photo contest, and a big THANK YOU to all participants!

The image above is our Grand Prize winner, taken by Nicole S. in Ft. Lauderdale, FL.

We asked our audience to submit photos showcasing tobacco industry marketing tactics and promotional strategies at the point of sale (POS), and we received over 40 great photos from 14 states and even two other countries (Austria and Pakistan). The entries cover a wide range of problems at the point of sale, and beyond just the contest, we hope these photos will be used to continue POS advocacy work.

VIEW WINNING ENTRIES FOR ALL CATEGORIES HERE.

Winners have been chosen in the following categories of tobacco industry activities at the POS:

Most Ironic
Stores Near Schools
Best Map or Infographic
Electronic Smoking Products
Novel Products
Greatest Youth Appeal
Fan Favorite

In addition to winners and honorable mentions for all categories, you can find all photo contest submissions along with other captivating images of POS tobacco industry tactics in our image gallery.

WHY DOES COUNTER TOBACCO HOST AN ANNUAL PHOTO CONTEST?

The Surgeon General has concluded that “advertising and promotional activities by tobacco companies have been shown to cause the onset and continuation of smoking among adolescents and young adults.” [1] The tobacco industry spends the majority of their marketing budget at the point of sale promoting its deadly products. [2] CounterTobacco.org is dedicated to providing tools and resources to counteract retail tobacco product sales and marketing. The photo contest and image gallery expose the tobacco industry’s marketing tactics in hopes of educating communities, and especially youth, about the dangers of tobacco retail marketing. Education and exposure of the industries’ tactics are critical to building awareness and serve as a first step in the policy change process. These photos offer tobacco control advocates a powerful tool to show what is happening at the point of sale.

With the tobacco industry wielding its influence and dollars at the point of sale, policy changes at the federal, state, and local levels are critical. Learn more about counteracting retail tobacco products sale and marketing.