The 1998 anti-smoking campaign that used graphic youth-focused messages to expose tobacco-industry practices was Truth.
The campaign was created for the American Legacy Foundation, now known as Truth Initiative, following the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement between U.S. states and major tobacco companies. Its advertising targeted teenagers and emphasized manipulation, addiction, and the industry’s marketing methods rather than relying only on conventional health warnings.
Truth became known for unusual television spots, public demonstrations, and direct language. Its approach treated young people as skeptical citizens who could challenge corporate behavior, not simply as passive recipients of health advice.
The campaign is sometimes confused with government cigarette-warning labels or with older anti-smoking advertisements focused on lung disease. Truth’s distinctive identity came from its youth culture strategy and its public exposure of tobacco-company tactics.