Comprehensive ban sought on tobacco ads, promotion

Public health and tobacco control activists called for a comprehensive ban on all forms of tobacco advertising and promotion in the nation's advertisement law, which is being revised.

In the publicized draft amendment to the current law, which took effect in early 1995, media including radio, TV, movies, newspapers, websites and magazines are banned from advertising tobacco products.

"That leaves loopholes for the tobacco industry sneaking into emerging new media platforms like WeChat," said Liang Xiaofeng, deputy director of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, on Monday.