While RJR insisted that it was using Joe Camel
only to entice young adult smokers to switch brands,
antismoking advocates accused the tobacco com-
pany of targeting children. Criticism against Joe
Camel was bolstered by a 1991 research study pub-
lished in theJournal of the American Medical Associa-
tionthat revealed children between five and six years
old were more likely to recognize Joe Camel than chil-
dren’s cartoon characters such as Fred Flintstone and
Mickey Mouse.
In 1991, San Francisco activist Janet Mangini sued
RJR, accusing the company of violating California
law by unfairly marketing to minors with its Joe
Camel cigarette ads, and other cities and counties
filed similar suits. In 1997, the Federal Trade Com-
mission filed an unfair-advertising complaint against
RJR after its investigation revealed that after the
launching of the Joe Camel campaign, the percent-
age of smokers under the age of eighteen who
smoked Camel cigarettes became larger than the
percentage of all adult smokers aged eighteen and
older who smoked Camel cigarettes. In an out-of-
court settlement with Mangini, RJR agree to stop its
Joe Camel campaign and to pay $10 million, $9 mil-
lion of which went to fund educational and advertis-
ing programs to dissuade youth smoking.
Impact In July, 1997, RJR retired Joe Camel, replac-
ing him with an updated version of the brand’s tradi-
tional Old Joe image. In 1998, the tobacco industry
and the attorneys general of forty-six states agreed to
ban the use of cartoon characters in tobacco adver-
tising, a practice that many were convinced encour-
aged young people to start smoking.
Further Reading
DeSmith, David.A Camel Named Joe: The Illustrated
Stor y of an American Pop Icon. Boston: Ducap
Books, 1998.
Fischer, P. M., et al. “Brand Logo Recognition by
Children Aged Three to Six Years: Mickey Mouse
and Old Joe the Camel.”Journal of the American
Medical Association266, no. 22 (1991): 3145-3148.
Garfield, Bob. “Camel Gets Adult, Hip—But It’s Still
Too Late.”Advertising Age68, no. 28 (July 14,
1997): 37.
Eddith A. Dashiell
See also Advertising; Tobacco industry settlement.
Johnson, Magic
Identification Professional basketball player and
HIV/AIDS advocate
Born August 14, 1959; Lansing, Michigan
Johnson announced in 1991 that he had contracted hu-
man immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and would retire from
basketball. He later resumed his basketball career and be-
came an HIV/AIDS advocate.
Earvin “Magic” Johnson, Jr., was the fourth of seven
children born to Earvin Johnson, Sr., and Christine
Johnson. He led Michigan State to a national cham-
pionship in his one year in college, then began a leg-
endary National Basketball Association (NBA) ca-
reer with the Los Angeles Lakers in 1979.
Much of the media attention focused on Johnson
in the 1990’s had little to do with sports. In Septem-
ber, 1991, he married his longtime girlfriend. In No-
vember, 1991, a blood test showed that he was HIV-
positive. A few days later, Johnson shocked sports
fans and the general public when he announced
that he was retiring from basketball because of the
diagnosis. At the time he made his announcement,
many Americans still assumed that HIV/AIDS was
restricted to homosexuals or drug addicts. The case
of Johnson did not fit either of those categories.
Once his wife and baby tested negative, Magic
Johnson dedicated his efforts to HIV/AIDS educa-
tion, a role bolstered by his celebrity status. However,
his basketball career was not completely over. He was
voted in by fans to play in the 1992 All-Star Game, in
which he scored twenty-five points. He played de-
spite objections from some players, namely Karl
Malone of the Utah Jazz, who feared on-court con-
tact with Johnson could jeopardize their health.
Johnson also played in the 1992 Summer Olympics
as part of the formidable “Dream Team,” which won
the gold medal.
To promote HIV/AIDS education, Johnson
authored a book for youth titledWhat You Can Do to
Avoid AIDS(1992), undertook numerous speaking
engagements, and filmed a television special that
was broadcast by the Nickelodeon network. In the
spring of 1992, he was invited by President George
H. W. Bush to join the National Commission on
AIDS. Controversy erupted when critics speculated
that Johnson was being appointed to capitalize on
his celebrity status and placate African American
AIDS activists. Johnson responded that he did not470 Johnson, Magic The Nineties in America