Corrective Statements

In 1999, the Department of Justice brought court action against major tobacco manufacturers, Philip Morris USA, R.J. Reynolds Tobacco, Lorillard, and Altria, under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization (RICO) Act for their 50-year campaign of deception and fraud about the dangers of smoking and secondhand smoke. In 2006, US Federal District Court Judge Gladys Kessler found the major cigarette manufacturers guilty of violating civil provisions of RICO and guilty of lying to the American public about the harms of cigarettes and secondhand smoke. Judge Kessler held that cigarette manufacturers could be compelled to make "corrective statements" on topics about which they had historically defrauded and deceived the public to "prevent and restrain future harm." Big Tobacco was required to tell the truth in court-ordered ads about the dangers of smoking beginning in 2017.¹

In 2018, about half (50.5%) of individuals who currently smoked reported seeing, in newspapers or on television, court-ordered industry-sponsored corrective statements. Nationally, exposure to the statements was 40.6% but lower among populations at the greatest risk of tobacco use (Figure 4.2.5).² In a follow-up study that also included exposure to messages on company corporate websites and onserts in cigarette packs, greater exposure was found to be associated with increased intentions to quit smoking; however, exposure was not associated with self-reported quit attempts among people who currently smoked.³ This suggested that the design and content of the antismoking advertisements require further improvements.

Starting in October 2023, the corrective action was extended to include point-of-sale locations covering about 200,000 retail stores that are under a merchandising contract with cigarette manufacturers liable in the lawsuit. The corrective statements (Figure 4.2.6) appeared in two-thirds of the nation's retailers and were on display for 21 months through June 2025.