An analysis of media news on electronic cigarettes, the popular addiction of recent years

Objective: The use of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes), which are promoted as tobacco-free cigarettes, is becoming increasingly widespread due to the perception that they are safer and more economical than regular cigarettes, that they reduce the desire to smoke or make it easier to quit smoking. E-cigarettes target especially children and young people through both traditional print and visual media as well as social media. The aim of this study is to analyze the media news on e-cigarettes in Türkiye in the last five years. Material-Method: The web pages of major news agencies in Türkiye are scanned using the keywords 'electronic cigarette', 'e-cigarette', 'electronic cigarette addiction', 'e-cigarette addiction'. The news article published between 2019 and 2024 are evaluated according to years, agencies, topics and content. For descriptive statistics, frequency (n) and percentage (%) representation is used. Findings: In the period between 2019 and 2024, 131 original news articles published in the news agencies were identified. A total of 31.0% of the news articles were published in 2023 and 35.9% were under health and life topics. While the rate of news reflecting expert opinions on the health risks and harmful effects of e-cigarettes is 48.1%, 33.6% of the news is about the efforts of law enforcement forces to combat e-cigarette smuggling. Conclusion: Studies have shown that when individuals have limited knowledge and experience or are uncertain about e-cigarettes, they are more susceptible to the content in the media. Regular exposure to this content may normalize perceptions about e-cigarette use, while some news content may be misleading. In this respect, it is thought that the news in the media containing accurate and complete information will enable the society to be informed and aware about e-cigarettes and will positively influence public support for public health policies and legislation.