TOBACCO ADS RECRUIT TEENS, PROF ASSERTS

Youth anti-smoking ads produced by tobacco companies are actually
recruitment pitches for new customers, a public health expert
testified Tuesday in a landmark smoking case. Dr. Michael Siegel, a
specialist on cigarette promotions, singled out the industry's
``Think, Don't Smoke'' slogan for conveying the opposite of its stated
message. The campaign seems to tell youngsters, ``if you want to be
thought of as a nerd like I was, then go ahead and don't smoke,'' the
Boston University professor said. ``But if you want to avoid that kind
of ridicule, man, take up a cigarette and be cool.''

Siegel is testifying on behalf of 300,000 to 500,000 sick Florida
smokers in a class-action lawsuit seeking billions of dollars in
punitive damages against the tobacco industry. The jury has already
ruled that cigarette companies make a dangerous product, and awarded
$12.7 million in compensatory damages to three smokers representing
the class.