A vintage Benson & Hedge's ad evokes a cheekier (but no less deadly) era of cigarette marketing

Sometimes an ad gets just a little too truthful for its own good.  By the time this 1972 full-pager for Benson & Hedges 100’s ran in Life magazine, smoking was widely understood to be associated with a range of serious diseases. So, sure, let’s equate using our product to jumping out of a plane.  Bought by Philip Morris in 1958, Benson & Hedges is a British brand and still a subsidiary of the American conglomerate Philip Morris International. This ad was part of a larger “favorite cigarette break” campaign that leaned into the fact that Benson & Hedges offered longer cigarettes at the same price point, so people kept accidentally snapping the suckers in two. “Nobody had ever mutilated a cigarette before in American advertising—cigarettes, like automobiles, had always been treated with reverent respect by their manufacturers,” Mad Woman Mary Wells Lawrence wrote in her 2002 memoir “A Big Life (In Advertising).”  “Anything anti-establishment seemed smart in the mid-’60s, so our advertising made Benson & Hedges wildly hip and cool and the cigarette to be seen with.” (Lawrence, the first female CEO listed on the New York Stock Exchange, is still alive at 91. Must not have been a smoker.) But the times? They are a-changin’. Benson & Hedges parent PMI was in the news last week as merger talks between it and Altria Group, another American purveyor of cancer, broke down. Altria itself holds a minority stake in Juul Labs, the embattled e-cigarette maker... Continue reading at 'Advertising Age'

[ Advertising Age | 2019-09-30 09:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #merger talks #minority stake #recent months #memoir

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Forget fake news: How in-feed native ads can spread positive news

For Facebook and publishers of the open web alike, the feed is considered sacred ground for users, delivering a direct stream of content and in-feed ads. But just like any powerful tool placed in the wrong hands, this type of advertising can become a weapon to spread false news or influence with... Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2018-05-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #powerful tool


Publishers try to use ad annoyance as a lure to subscribers

Publishers including the Guardian, USA Today and Salon let readers turn off mobile ads for a price. The post Publishers try to use ad annoyance as a lure to subscribers appeared first on Digiday. Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2018-05-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #publishers including #post publishers #usa today #readers turn #mobile ads


Summer promotions set to make market sizzle

The sun is set to shine on the summer book market this year, boosted by a crop of fresh nationwide promotions targeted at the season. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2018-05-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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In a tough ad climate, small publishers are finding success in small donations

Publishers are finding readers are willing to make small-dollar donations to support news operations. The post In a tough ad climate, small publishers are finding success in small donations appeared first on Digiday. Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2018-05-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #small publishers #finding success


Review: Vintage Roger Hall play runs well with 'soup up'; Some features outdated

Review: A large comfy leather sofa, persian rug, bland painting and shelves of books make up the set of Remuera housewife Deb's life and an updated version of Roger Hall's 1999 one-woman play The Book Club, showing at Auckland's PumpHouse Theatre. Continue reading at Stuff

[ Stuff | 2018-05-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #books make #updated version #book club #pumphouse theatre


Quartz' about-face on programmatic ads has big implications for digital publishing

Atlantic Media-owned Quartz has long eschewed programmatic advertising, arguing display ads sold through automation negatively impact user experience. But the company said Tuesday that it is changing its mind, and among other steps has begun selling ads through Concert, a digital ad marketplace... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2018-05-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #digital publishing #vox media #nbc universal


Books for Belief: Christian Apologetics Enter A 'Golden Era'

Publishers and authors discuss new trends and age old questions within books on apologetics, as well as the importance of the genre—which provides readers with arguments that support Christian beliefs. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2018-05-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #golden era


In the Book Market, Politics Come to the Fore

Two political books have been big winners this year thanks to a certain someone in the White House. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2018-05-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #book market #political books #big winners #white house


Middleton appointed head of marketing for Penguin Live

Penguin Random House's inhouse live events team, Penguin Live, has appointed Zoe Middleton from the Wellcome Collection to be its head of marketing.  Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2018-05-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #penguin live


Four Publishing Trade Groups Criticize Google’s Ad Policy Change in Letter to CEO

Announcing its policy change less than a month before GDPR goes into effect, Google has left publishers scrambling to make sense of its new rules. The post Four Publishing Trade Groups Criticize Google’s Ad Policy Change in Letter to CEO appeared first on Folio:. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2018-05-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #ceo appeared #policy change #make sense


How Amazon is priming its ad business for the next year

Amazon's brutal efficiency, obsession with automation and ruthless pricing tactics have helped it disrupt or conquer market after market, starting with books in 1997. Now it's bringing those tactics to bear on the company's latest target: the ad business.To shoulder its way into an industry... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2018-04-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #ad-tech companies #media companies


Pan Mac and Bloomsbury triumph at D&AD awards

A number of trade publishers have enjoyed success at the annual D&AD Awards, and will hope to win one of the body’s coveted Pencils at a prize ceremony this evening.  Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2018-04-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #pan mac #trade publishers


Triangle Interactive Looks to Grow Kids’ Read-Along E-book Market

Targeting a niche in the thriving audiobook market, Triangle Interactive has released an initial list of 1,000 English and Spanish-language children's ebooks from a variety of publishers. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2018-04-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #e-book market #spanish-language children


The Guardian view on ad tech: a tangled web | Editorial

Martin Lewis is suing Facebook. The question is whether companies can be held responsible for the behaviour of their softwareMartin Lewis, the consumer advice and money-saving expert, is suing Facebook in a case that threatens the dominant business model of publishing on the internet. It raises... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2018-04-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #facial recognition


More Facebook videos will get pre-roll ads soon

Facebook plans to try out pre-roll ads -- that is, commercials that play before videos -- in more parts of its service. This comes after it's spent months testing the format in limited places, like the Watch section. In a blog post published today, t... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2018-04-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #facebook videos #pre-roll ads #facebook plans


German supreme court rejects ad-block challenge

Publishing giant Axel Springer has lost a long-running case seeking to limit the use of Adblock Plus. Continue reading at BBC World

[ BBC World | 2018-04-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Comics Retailers Are Optimistic Despite Market Changes, Sales Declines

Despite a disappointing 2017, comics retailers attending the annual Diamond Retailers Summit in Chicago were optimistic about 2018, and expect new retail services and forthcoming titles to drive sales in the second half of the year. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2018-04-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #comics retailers #sales declines #forthcoming titles #drive sales


The Rundown: Google AMP has short-term appeal but potential long-term costs

Publishers, still smarting from blows inflicted by Facebook and its ever-changing news feed, have found some comfort in the warm embrace of Google. The post The Rundown: Google AMP has short-term appeal but potential long-term costs appeared first on Digiday. Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2018-04-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #google amp


Publishers pursuing international subscribers face market-specific hurdles

American publishers are interested in growing their subscriber bases abroad. But international audiences pose unique challenges. The post Publishers pursuing international subscribers face market-specific hurdles appeared first on Digiday. Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2018-04-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #american publishers


Index Exchange expands as ad tech consolidation looms

Index Exchange said Wednesday that it is hiring 200 staffers by the end of this year, bringing its total headcount to 520 and signaling growth even as the overpopulated ad-tech business continues to consolidate.The company says its expansion is not only happening without outside investors, but... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2018-04-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #technology company #index exchange #helps publishers