UK News Media Mainly Negative About Vaping – 6 Month Study Results!

What Triggered This Tracker?

We shared in our Vape News about a study on the World Vapers Alliance (WVA) website which asks the question “How biased is the media about vaping?”

The study in question was written by Michael Landl (Director of the WVA) and passionate vape advocate.

It studied articles about vaping in the media during the week 23/4/22 to 1/5/22 to determine how many were Positive, Negative or Neutral on the subject.

There were only 4 articles from the UK and 3 of those were positive and 1 Neutral.

Continuation Of The Study

I thought I would like to continue this study – so I monitored UK mainstream media including national newspaper websites and national news sites for any articles which were vaping related.

I then classified them as..

• Positive – the article promotes vaping.
• Negative – the article warns against vaping.
• Neutral – either it is just a factual article or it does cover both sides of the argument equally.

Michael’s experiment was global and he found that 40% of the articles he studied were Negative and 29% were Neutral / Positive each.

This started on May 1st 2022 and the study ended 31st October 2022.

Obviously this is not a scientific experiment more just to see the general opinion.

I have not included any sources behind a paywall as I am not able to fully read the article to assess whether it is positive or negative sadly.

Please also share any mainstream media articles in the UK I might have missed in the comments section!

Results

Sadly it appears that the UK news media is quite negative about vaping. Even positive stories were given a negative spin.

Also there were plenty of instances where myths were used – i.e. the long dispelled rumour of “Popcorn Lung” to create fear.

Disposables as predicted also brought their own negative press from environmental concerns to their popularity with under age vapers.

The results I found are…

You can view all of the articles used to compile this study in their Monthly group below.

Hover your mouse / pointer over the sections in the pie chart below to see the numbers involved.

News Source – October

Positive

• The Sun – Free vapes will be given to pregnant women to help them quit smoking.
• BBC -Pregnant women to be handed free vapes by London council.

Negative

• Daily Record – Scottish football clubs slammed by experts for sponsorship deals with vaping firms.
• Daily Mail – The vape warning everyone needs to hear: Dave Hughes hadn’t smoked for 30 years when he was handed an e-cigarette on election night. He was hooked ‘almost straight away’.
• Daily Mail – American teen vaping crisis laid bare: More than 2.6 MILLION children aged 11 to 17 are now hooked on e-cigarettes amid rise of super-strength disposable devices.
• Daily Star – OnlyFans star ‘thought she was going to die’ after smoking ‘dodgy vape’ in Bali.
• The Guardian – The Observer view on the dangers of assuming vaping is a safe alternative to smoking.
• The Scottish Sun – HEALTH RISK Thousands of Scots schoolkids feared to be hooked on vapes with more nicotine than two packs of cigarettes.
• Daily Mail – Pregnant smokers to get FREE vapes under council-backed scheme – but experts accuse officials of ‘playing with fire’.
• The Sun – HEART BREAK Urgent warning as e-cigarettes could ‘increase your risk of sudden killer’.
• ITV News – E-cigarettes: Why vaping is on the rise in schools and what can be done about it.
• ITV News – Battery warning after vape catches fire in person’s pocket in Oxfordshire shop.
• BBC – Should disposable vapes be banned?.
• Daily Mail – E-cigarettes may cause deadly irregular heartbeats… just like normal tobacco, study suggests.
• The Sun – SMOKE SCREEN Urgent warning to anyone who’s vaped and smoked over ‘deadly side effect’.
• Daily Mail – Is the jig up for vaping? Two MORE NIH studies find e-cigs are just as bad for the heart as normal cigarettes.
• Sky News -Vaping adults displayed ‘worrisome changes’ in blood pressure and heart function, study finds.
• Metro – Vaping is Gen-Z’s new status symbol with kids as young as 12 puffing away on the sickly sweet e-cigs, but how safe are they?.
• Express – Young woman claims vaping caused her ‘lung to collapse’ as she is rushed to hospital.
• Daily Mail – Vaping is just as bad as cigarettes for your heart, finds landmark NIH studies — and using both carries biggest risk.
• Mirror – Vaping is just as bad as cigarettes for your heart, landmark study finds.
• Independent – Vaping is just as bad for your heart as cigarettes, landmark study finds.
• Daily Star – Vaper almost burns genitals off after e-cigarette catches fire in his trousers.
• Daily Star – Is vaping really better than smoking? Experts warn vapers exposed to more nicotine.
• Express – Vaping just as bad as cigarettes claims study – two together ‘could increase health risks’.

Neutral

• Express – 168m vaping devices are bought every year causing a UK landfill crisis, warns Sofia Luo.
• Express – Disposable vapes ‘should be banned’ – warnings erupt as billions dumped across UK.
• BBC – Covid and schools: Bid to tackle vaping and swearing at teachers.
• Daily Record – SNP MSP demands action to reduce ‘worrying’ number of young Scots vaping.
• Guardian – China bans fruity vapes – but not their export to the UK.
• Express – ‘Clouds of smoke impairing vision!’ Motorists could face huge fines for vaping in cars.
• The Sun – GREAT E-VAPE How many vapes can you take on a plane?.
• Daily Star – Pregnant women to be given free vapes from London council to help them stop smoking cigs.

News Source – September

This month saw the release of an NHS survey which showed youth vaping had risen slightly (3%) and Disposable vapes were more popular.

Also the report by Kings College London released this month was very positive about vaping, but a lot of the media still put a negative slant on the findings.

Positive

• Guardian -Switch from smoking to vaping cuts health risks substantially, report finds.

Negative

• Express – More teens vape but fewer take drugs or smoke, according to NHS figures.
• Metro -Juul to pay nearly $440,000,000 in youth vaping probe settlement.
• Mirror – Fears over teen vaping as 18% of 15-year-olds now smoking e-cigarettes.
• Guardian -One in five 15-year-old girls in England vape.
• The Sun – ‘HOOKING KIDS’ Warning to parents as vaping DOUBLES in key age group – with 1 in 5 using e-cigarettes.
• Daily Mail -Do you vape? Check your charger NOW: Shocking video shows the lithium battery from an e-cigarette EXPLODING during charging test.
• Sky News – Vaping popularity rising among teenagers in England as cigarette use declines.
• BBC -Rise in teenage vaping, as drug use falls – survey.
• Daily Mail -Vaping epidemic sees one in ten teenagers hooked – TRIPLE rate of kids who smoke tobacco: Surge in teen girls using e-cigs fuels ‘deeply disturbing’ rise as experts call for £5 gadgets to be sold in plain packaging.
• Sky News -Teen vaping has become a ‘route into nicotine addiction, rather than out of it’, expert warns.
• Independent -Teens more likely to try vaping than smoking – study.
• Daily Mail -Juul is ordered to pay $400 MILLION settlement for marketing its flavored vape devices to teens.
• Daily Mail -How UK is sleepwalking into a public health disaster with child vaping epidemic: Teenagers hooked on e-cigs reveal how they’ve been left needing INHALERS after being lured in by shops peddling ‘smokeable Fanta’.
• Metro -Teens are turning away from drugs and cigarettes – but one in 10 are vaping.
• Daily Mail -Revealed: Campaigners raise alarms about how kids are being coaxed into vaping with bright pink £5 e-cigs that double as FIDGET SPINNERS and taste like watermelon.
• BBC -Vaping: Juul to pay $438.5m in youth marketing probe.
• Daily Mail -VAPING is to blame for ‘Muslims killing Muslims’ gang shootings, Islamic schoolboy warns in sermon to fellow students – as he worries his peers are taking the first step to a life of crime by using e-cigarettes in campus toilets.
• The Sun – SMOKE SCREEN Vaping may ‘wake up’ cancer cells and trigger wave of killer disease in a decade, experts warn.
• Daily Record – Warning issued to vapers as scientists suggest it may ‘wake up’ cancer cells.
• The Sun – VAPE SCANDAL Scandal of ‘candy’ vapes putting YOUR kids at risk – and what to do if your child is hooked.
• Daily Mail -Regular vaping can cause damage to the airways of a person’s lungs – giving them symptoms similar to asthma, study finds.
• Daily Mail -Urgent warning to young vapers like Phoebe Burgess as health experts say highly addictive e-cigarettes cause nasty diseases such as ‘popcorn lung’.
• Daily Mail -Juul sues the FDA for not releasing the documents used to justify BANNING e-cigarettes that it blames for the vaping crisis across US.
• Daily Mail -Ministers face calls to crack down on child vaping epidemic: Government-commissioned report rules trendy £5 e-cigs are ‘very unlikely to be risk-free’ even if they ARE safer than smoking – as experts take aim at neon-coloured packaging and sweet flavours.
• BBC -Young non-smokers told not to take up vaping by experts.
• The Sun – TOBACC-NO Kids under NINE hospitalised with breathing conditions linked to vaping.
• Daily Mail -Accidentally hilarious detail in Phoebe Burgess’ Instagram post after the classy former WAG surprised fans by taking up vaping.
• Sky News -Crackdown needed to stop children buying vapes, experts warn.
• Metro -Widow who fears vaping helped kill her husband calls for new inquest.
• ITV -Curb vape sales to children due to potential risks, experts urge.

Neutral

• i News -Vaping substantially less harmful than smoking, largest review of its kind finds.
• The Sun – PUFFED-OFF Major review of vaping finds age-group at ‘greatest risk of harm’.
• BBC -How did e-cigarettes and vaping get so popular?.

News Source – August

Positive

• Daily Mail -Australian doctors campaigning to reveal what is really inside vapes claim comparisons with smoking are ‘wrong’.
• BBC -Great Yarmouth e-cigarette trial sees two fifths of smokers quit.
• Wales Online – Free e-cigarette vouchers help two in five smokers to quit in pilot study.
• The Sun – TOBACC-NO Free e-cigarettes on the NHS would help four in ten smokers to quit, study shows.
• ITV News -Free e-cigarettes scheme trialled in Norfolk could be rolled out nationwide to help smokers quit.
• Guardian -Vaping reaches record levels in Great Britain, report reveals.
• The Scotsman -Vaping hits a record high as more than four million opt for ‘smoking’ devices.
• Independent -Free e-cigarette vouchers help two in five smokers to quit in pilot study.

Negative

• i News -Supply of illegal super-strong vapes smuggled to UK from the US ‘linked to organised crime.
• Guardian -‘When I see kids vaping, I warn them: that’s what killed my daughter’.
• The Sun – VAPERS IN HAZE Vapers complain their devices are leaving them exhausted, blurring their vision or giving them constipation.
• Mirror – EXCLUSIVE: Paedophiles grooming kids with vapes as e-cigs become teenage fashion craze.
• Metro -Army of internet ‘bots’ are spreading positive messages about e-cigs, study finds.
• Daily Star – Man left with severe burns after vape ‘burst into flames’ while sinking pints in pub.
• Daily Star – Men who vape are twice as likely to suffer from erectile dysfunction – study.
• Daily Star – Man who put e-cigarette in baby’s mouth for viral clip faces 20 years in jail.

Neutral

• STV News -Hundreds of vapes taken off pupils at Scotland’s high schools.
• Mirror – Should flavoured vapes be banned? Have your say as EU considers prohibition.
• Daily Mail -Prescribing e-cigarettes on the NHS could help up to 40% of smokers quit, study claims.
• Daily Record – Doctor explains vaping health dangers as use among children rises.
• ITV News -Vaping reaches record levels in Britain after rising rapidly over past decade, report says.
• Sky News -‘Vaping revolution’: 4.3m Brits now use e-cigarettes – but 350,000 of them have never smoked.
• The Sun – VAPING RULES Can you vape on a plane? E-cigarettes travel rules and laws explained.
• Wales Online – Vaping reaches record levels with 4.3 million Brits now puffing away.
• Metro -Can you take disposable vapes on a plane in the UK?.

News Source – July

Sadly July has brought a lot of negative news mainly related to disposable vapes. The ASH Youth Vaping survey showed that youth vaping has slightly increased but more under age people are using disposable vapes – which seems to be one of the triggers.

Positive

• Daily Record – Scottish Government should encourage smokers to swap cigarettes for vapes, poll suggests.
• Daily Mail -Don’t just tax e-cigarettes! Scientists say raising taxes on vaping devices by just $1 will see a rise in people using potentially more harmful cigarettes.

Negative

• BBC News – E-cigarettes: Young addict fear as 17-year-old can’t stop vaping.
• Wales Online – Rise in children vaping across Britain “influenced by social media”.
• Metro – Ads on TikTok and Instagram “behind rise in children vaping”.
• Daily Mail – “No one goes to the loos to use the toilets… everyone’s vaping”: With the number of youngsters who vape doubling in a year, Tom Rawstorne investigates how our children are being cynically turned into nicotine addicts.
• BBC News – Market flooded by unsafe vapes aimed at children.
• Daily Mail – 19-year-old who quit four-year vaping addiction cold turkey as part of a $3K BET documents the horrific realities of withdrawal – from binge eating and vomiting to brutal manic episodes. (USA Related)
• Wales Online – Warning over vapes being sold to children as use rises rapidly.
• Daily Mail – Girl, 11, is rushed to hospital after vaping as mother warns parents over fake e-cigarettes being sold to children.
• Daily Mail – “Why I’m never vaping again”: Uni student issues an urgent warning to vape users after her lung collapsed and she was rushed to hospital.
• Daily Mail – Expert warns that up to 95% of people who develop severe “popcorn lung” as a result of vaping will DIE within five years of developing the disease.
• Express – Vaping Health hazard: Dr Sara warns of “popcorn lung” – “an inflammatory lung disease”.
• Guardian -Child vaping risks becoming ‘public health catastrophe’ in UK, experts warn.
• Daily Mail -Primary school students are now VAPING at school as experts sound the alarm about ‘horrific’ popcorn lung that kills up to 95 per cent of sufferers. (Popcorn Lung Claxon!)
• The Times -Elf Bars: the candy-coloured vapes getting teens hooked on nicotine.
• Daily Mail -Teachers’ body urges mandatory bag and pocket checks of students to stop ‘out of control’ vaping in schools.
• Daily Star – Disposable Elf Bar vapes could power 1,200 Teslas but keep going straight in the bin.

Neutral

• Daily Star – Travelling Brits warned vaping in these countries could land you in jail.
• Daily Star – England fans face prison or fines for taking vapes to World Cup due to strict Qatar laws.
• Daily Star – Londoners are nation’s biggest vapers – getting through nine bottles of e-liquid a week.
• The Sun – Vape Nation – UK city with the biggest vapers revealed – with average users getting through NINE bottles of liquid a week.
• The Guardian – Juul can keep selling vaping products as it appeals ban, FDA says.
• The Guardian – Parents in the UK: has your child or teenager taken up vaping?
• Sky News – Millions of disposable vapes containing valuable metal ending up in landfill.
• The Guardian – Chinese vaping giant flouting UK advertising rules on selling to children.
• Daily Mail -Use of e-cigarettes among US adults DROPPED in 2020 – with 17% fall for under-20s fueling the decrease, study finds.
• Wales Online – Number of children vaping has doubled in two years, MP warns.
• ITV News -Government crackdown on smoking and alcohol paused until next PM is chosen, ITV News understands.
• Express -Unsafe devices flooding UK risk obscuring ‘huge net positives’ of vaping, fears campaigner.
• The Sun – VAPING RULES Can you vape on a plane? E-cigarettes travel rules and laws explained.

News Source – June

It is worth noting a lot of news articles are about the Khan Review into Tobacco control which was published June 9th 2022.

Vaping was a huge part of this review so was mentioned in articles with headlines relating to other measures in the review.

Positive

• The Sun – Major change to smoking laws & cost could be revealed today after report is unveiled – some teens may be banned for life.
• Daily Mail – Children could be banned from buying cigarettes for LIFE under bold “smoke-free” plan: 15 actions in Sajid Javid backed report include making it ILLEGAL to light up in pub gardens, forcing TV showing with any scene to be 18+ and stopping supermarket sales.
• Butt Out – Women to get shopping vouchers when pregnant to help quit smoking.
• iNews – The Government would be foolish not to raise the smoking age to 21, all the science says it will work.
• The Mirror – Riot Rehab Bus rolls into Glastonbury Festival helping people to give up smoking.

Negative

• Daily Mail – Australia declares WAR on vapes and cigarettes with smoking bans planned for pubs, clubs and even outdoor areas in a bid to make it harder to light up – and one state is leading the way.
• The Times – Children sold vape pens as powerful as 50 cigarettes.
• The Times – Elf Bars and Me – I’m a vaping addict so will I get Gum Disease?
• The Sun – Puffed Off – Urgent warning to parents over dangerous products available to kids on the high street.
• The Sun – Vape Risk – Soaring numbers of people need treatment for breathing issues caused by vaping, figures show.
• Daily Star – Stark cancer and lung damage warning issued over Elf Bar disposable vapes.
• Daily Record – What is an Elf Bar and are they dangerous as new vape smoking craze surges?.
• Daily Mirror – What is an Elf Bar and are they bad for you as new smoking craze rips across UK.
• Daily Mail – Astonishing video shows what’s really inside your vape as top doctor Kerry Chant declares war on the popular product.
• ITV – Is vaping seen as safe now a new health report advises it as a way to stop smoking?
• The Sun – Eye See You – I’m an eye doctor – here’s the crucial warning I give all patients who smoke or vape.
• Daily Mail – Aussie schools install vape detectors inside bathrooms to alert teachers to children who are vaping.
• The Mirror – Student blames horrific “red raw” sores covering 90% of body on sharing vapes with pals.
• The Express – Vaping compared to cigarettes may raise risk of stroke by 15% among younger people – study.
• The Express – Vaping: “Emerging data suggests links to chronic lung disease and asthma”, warns doctor.
• BBC News – Vaping – is it a risk-free option?
• The Guardian – US bans Juul but young vapers are already switching to newer products.
• Daily Mail – Teenagers open up about their crippling addiction to vaping and how easy they are to buy – as calls grow to ban e-cigarettes following a damning government report. (Australia related)
• The Mirror – Dad left with “excruciating” third degree burns on leg after vape “exploded” in pocket.
• Daily Mail – Flavoured tobacco vapes could be BANNED in the EU after US regulators’ move to ban Juul products.
• Irish Sun – CANCER CONCERNS – flavoured vaping products face EU ban as sales among young people skyrocket.

Neutral

• The Sun – Where Brits could face JAIL this summer for vaping on holiday.
• ITV – Is vaping seen as safe now a new health report advises it as a way to stop smoking?
• Sky News – How many people smoke these days – and do Britons smoke more than the French?
• BBC News – Smoking age of sale should rise by year each year.
• The Guardian – Smoking age in England should rise by a year each year. review says.
• The Times – The Times view on banning cigarettes: No Butts.
• The Sun – “Get a life” – I’m pregnant and still vape – I’m trolled but don’t care, it’s my body and I’m sure it’s fine.
• ITV – Bomb disposal team called to Muller Yogurt factory in Market Drayton over broken vape device.
• BBC News – Vaping device causes bomb scare at Muller factory.
• Daily Mail – Juul Cigarettes could be pulled from shelves as soon as today.
• Metro – FDA “set to ban Juul e-cigarettes in the US”.
• Daily Mail – “What about drugs and cigarettes?” Sean Hannity slams FDA and Joe Biden for BANNING sale of JUUL e-cigarettes.
• BBC News – Juul: US bans all products from leading vape company.
• The Guardian – E-cigarettes: FDA bans market-leading Juul in blow to US tobacco industry.
• Sky News – US vaping company ordered to pull electronic cigarettes from shelves.
• Daily Mail – Vapers rush to stock up on Juul e-cigarettes as FDA banned them from being sold in stores.
• Daily Mail – Sean Hannity’s promise to vape live on-air and cops can “come and arrest him”.
• The Guardian – FDA ban on Juul e-cigarettes temporarily halted.
• Metro – US federal court temporarily blocks FDA’s ban on Juul e-cigarettes.
• Daily Mail – Federal court BLOCKS FDA’s ban on Juul e-cigarettes.
• Wales Online – Geordie Shore star rapped for breaching e-cigarette rules.
• The Sun – Holy Smokes – Brit holiday warning – vaping in these countries could land you in jail.
• Sky News – Flavoured heated tobacco products could be banned under EU plan to fight cancer.

News Source – May

Positive

• Express Online – Vape Britain: Huge new drive to wipe out smoking in England by 2030.
• Scottish Daily Express – Killjoy Scottish Government’s potential vaping advert ban could stop lives being saved.
• The Guardian – E-cigarettes “as safe as nicotine patches” for pregnant smokers trying to quit.
• Express Online – UK cigarette ban: Smokers could be forced to ditch habit and start vaping, scientist warns.
• i News – E-cigarettes may be more effective than nicotine patches in helping pregnant women quit smoking.
• The Sun – Butt Out – Major change to smoking laws set to be introduced in “radical” plan to promote vaping and e-cigarettes.
• The Express – Ban smoking in favour of vaping Britons say in exclusive new poll.
• The Guardian – Legal Smoking age in England could be raised to 21 – report. (Includes reference to promoting vaping to smokers)
• Daily Star – Legal smoking age in UK could rise to 21 under “radical” government review. (Again mentions promoting vaping to smokers)
• Wales Online – “Radical” changes could see England’s legal smoking age raised (same story as above).
• The Express – Smoking warning: Major change to law set to be introduced to crack down on tobacco use. Talks about promoting vaping and even shares the NHS video displaying the difference between smoking and vaping.

Negative

• Daily Mail – Covid Crusader Dr Kerry Chant launches a war on vapes with huge fines for those who break her tough rules: “Zero Tolerance approach” (Written with Australia in mind but shares loads of highly negative disinformation on vaping – including EVALI)
• Wales Online – Vapers warned they “are inhaling potentially dangerous levels of synthetic chemicals“.
• Metro – Teenage Girls are using vapes as an appetite suppressant – mainly aimed at Scotland but full of anti-vaping balls.
• Scottish Sun – Vape Alert – Vapes are being used by young girls as an appetite suppressant, health experts have warned.
• The Sun – Puffed Off Urgent warning to vapers over “deadly toxins lurking in popular flavour”.
• The Express – Oral health: Vaping inflicts damage and can lead to “irreversible” problems.

Neutral

• Daily Mail – Is Kerry Chant wrong about vapes? New research says e-cigarettes can help pregnant women give up smoking – again aimed at Australia and covers a lot of negative and positive findings about vaping. Some are total crap obviously but balanced out by the positives.
• Scottish Sun – Puff Justice – When can I be fined for vaping while driving in Scotland?.
• Independent – ie (Ireland)  – HSE issues alert for certain Aroma King e-cigarettes advising public not to use them.
• Daily Mail – Legal smoking age could rise to 21 under Sajid Javid’s “radical” plants to make just five per cent of Britons smokers by 2030. (Mentions about promoting vaping and how it is safe than smoking, but does throw a doubt in about the long term safety of vaping)
• Daily Mirror – Smoking singletons three times more likely to be “left on the shelf” than non-smokers. (Sadly according to the survey results even vaping was a turn off). Almost went into the “Negative” category but they are only presenting results.
• Daily Mail – From Stubbing out cigarettes forever to eating more nuts: The seven simple habits that can almost HALVE your risk of dementia (even if you’re genetically predisposed to the condition). Brief mention of swapping smoking for NRT or Vaping.
• The Guardian – Big Tobacco is killing the planet with plastics. No smokescreen should be allowed to hide that. Reports environmental concerns with cigarettes, vapes and other forms of tobacco products.
• The Scotsman – Call for Scottish smokers and vapers to bin their butts to protect wildlife and the planet.