Truth Initiative Launches New Outsmart Nicotine Campaign Ads
Wednesday, April 22, 2026
Posted by: Natalia Gromov
Truth Initiative has launched a new national campaign drawing attention to the troubling rise in young people using multiple tobacco and nicotine products at the same time, including e‑cigarettes, cigarettes, and, for the first time, oral nicotine pouches such as Zyn. The campaign underscores how these products are often used together, increasing risks for addiction and harm, and highlights the growing normalization and appeal of nicotine pouches among youth and young adults. This effort also marks the first time in nearly a decade that Truth Initiative has featured cigarette use in a national media campaign, reflecting ongoing concerns about the glamorization of smoking in popular culture and persistent usage rates in certain demographics. More details about the campaign can be found below. Gen Z is navigating a nicotine landscape marked by the wide availability of a variety of addictive products with a high nicotine content. The national Outsmart Nicotine campaign confronts changing patterns of nicotine use among young people head on and connects them to free quitting support through EX Program, the organization’s free, evidence-based program. The expansion of the Outsmart Nicotine campaign introduces three new ads — “Drive Thru,” “Study Sesh,” and “Crush” — that showcase how nicotine use can become a cycle of addiction that is tied to everyday stressors like school, work, social life and family pressures. “Study Sesh,” in particular, portrays a student juggling academic pressure and nicotine cravings, becoming the campaign’s first-ever effort to show and address dual use of e-cigarettes and nicotine pouches. In addition to the rise of dual and poly-use of products and the introduction of nicotine pouches in recent years, cigarettes have been seen more prominently in culture and phrases like “drunk cigs don’t count” continue to circulate online with related social media hashtags generating tens of thousands of impressions each month. Ensuring young people have access to effective quitting resources is critical as many who use nicotine say they want to live free from addiction. Outsmart Nicotine directs young people to EX Program, Truth Initiative’s free digital quitting platform developed in collaboration with Mayo Clinic. To date, nearly 1 million young people ages 13 to 24 have joined EX Program on their journey to quit nicotine, a milestone that underscores the role effective and accessible support can play in helping young people live free of nicotine. The campaign broke with a piece on NBC: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HW1bD4O39dU&feature=youtu.be Read the full press release: https://truthinitiative.org/press/press-release/truth-initiatives-ex-program-launches-first-campaign-include-nicotine-pouches Additional content in support of the Outsmart Nicotine effort: Learn more about the campaign: https://truthinitiative.org/outsmart-nicotine
Learn more about EX Program: https://truthinitiative.org/exprogram Re-share the campaign on social media.
Please find linked a partner social toolkit for easy re-share: https://socialpresskit.com/truth-initiative
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