New Zealand drivers have contrasting fortunes
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RNZ News
an hour ago
- RNZ News
Vape brands bypass regulations on marketing to young people by using global social media accounts
By Lucy Hardie, Becky Freeman, Christina Watts and Judith McCool of In 2024, 21.3 percent of people aged between 15 and 24 vaped daily. (File photo) Photo: Unsplash / Tbel Abuseridze Youth vaping is a major public health concern in many countries, with New Zealand's youth vaping rates among the highest in the world, and rising. In 2017, 3 percent of New Zealanders aged between 15 and 24 vaped daily, but by 2024, this was up to 21.3 percent . Globally, one of the main drivers is the promotion of vapes on social media. Like many other countries, New Zealand introduced vape advertising restrictions , including on social media, as part of efforts to curb this problem. But vape manufacturers mirror the techniques of traditional tobacco marketing, including stylish branding, flavours and sponsorship, and use global channels to get around domestic regulations. This raises the question of whether New Zealand's rules can be effective in a globalised digital world. Our new study investigates the content posted to the global Instagram account of British American Tobacco's vape brand Vuse, which holds more than 25 percent of the global market. We identify and describe the marketing strategies used to promote the brand to a global audience. We assessed the marketing strategies used by the account by analysing all posts made by @ - including imagery, audio and text - during the year from August 2023 to 2024. British American Tobacco have a vaping brand called Vuse. (File photo) Photo: AFP We looked for brand and influencer collaborations and posts with high engagement (likes and views). We found the company formed several high-profile collaborations as a major part of its marketing strategy. The most notable collaboration is with the Formula 1 motor racing team, McLaren. As a key sponsor, the car is heavily emblazoned with the Vuse logo and is frequently promoted on the Instagram account. Sharing content between the McLaren and Vuse Instagram accounts increased the @ audience from around 17,000 followers to the nearly 14 million followers of the McLaren race team. The four most viewed video posts in our study featured the motorsport partnership, with one clip viewed more than 225,000 times. British American Tobacco has maintained a decades-long partnership with Formula 1, dating back to when traditional cigarette advertising was still allowed. The Vuse Instagram account also features other lifestyle and entertainment collaborations. In a series of posts related to music festivals, Vuse employed DJs, artists, digital content creators and social media influencers to create engaging and stylish videos and photographs. The tobacco industry has undertaken music festival marketing for generations as an effective strategy to reach young people. "Get ready with me" videos are popular on Instagram, especially among young women. Four of the ten most viewed posts on the Vuse account were in this style, featuring young women filming themselves selecting fashion, makeup and hairstyles, and explaining their choices or setting the video to popular music. In these videos, the vape may appear only briefly, for example slipped into a handbag as the final touch before a night out. Yet this placement connects the product and brand with glamorous, fun or exciting settings, creating an important association between the brand and appealing lifestyles and experiences. The influencers often shared this content directly with their existing followers. Instagram policy requires users to disclose paid partnerships with the #ad hashtag or paid partnership tag. Of the nearly 700 times an influencer or brand was tagged in the posts, only 14 were disclosed in this way. Vape companies often use workarounds to bypass restrictions on marketing to maintain a presence in youth-oriented settings. Instagram lists @ as a verified account, based in the UK, where advertising standards permit only "factual" vape content on a company's social media account, but paid influencer marketing and "imagery unrelated to the product" are banned. The official @ account appears to align more clearly with these parameters. Instagram's own policies on vape marketing are difficult to decipher, with complicated rules that leave significant loopholes. For example, vape advertisements and paid influencer marketing for vape products are banned on Instagram. However, these rules do not extend to the brand content on a company's own account. Our research shows Vuse uses the worldwide account to promote brand associations, an indirect but powerful form of marketing that sits outside Instagram policies. Cross-posting to other accounts enables Vuse to reach new audiences without paid advertising on the platform. Researchers suggest social media policies are intentionally unclear to enable platforms and the industry to capitalise on lucrative, instant and borderless sharing of digital content to new audiences. Dealing with these issues will require global cooperation to require social media platforms to prohibit vape marketing more broadly. It will also require active monitoring and enforcement of breaches to hold social media platforms and vape brands to account. Domestic laws and rules must also apply to international content. - This story was originally published on The Conversation.
RNZ News
an hour ago
- RNZ News
Hayden Wilde's doctor on his remarkable comeback
Hayden Wilde. Photo: PHOTOSPORT Hayden Wilde's comeback from a horrific accident to win a major race in London on the weekend is a result of dogged toughness, his doctor says. Three months after being hit by a truck on a training ride in Japan, the New Zealand triathlete returned to competitive action with a remarkable victory at the T100 series race on Sunday. The Olympic silver medallist couldn't hold back tears when he crossed the line, having overcome one of the darkest moments of his career. Three months prior, the 27-year-old was in a hospital bed in Japan beginning the recovery from several broken ribs, a broken scapula, and a punctured lung after being knocked off his bike by a truck. Wilde phoned his doctor Sam Mayhew back in New Zealand immediately after the accident in Tokyo. "He phones me up on the side of the road acting as though it wasn't even that bad and then you wait two hours until he's actually in hospital and you get the extent of the injuries and I was like 'jeepers how were you even talking to me' so it's pretty extraordinary what he's been able to achieve in the last three months to get back to racing. "With Hayden he's so tough it was hard to really know what's initially happened. I was firstly worried about concussion because he's just sitting there on the side of the road talking to me from Tokyo, so sort of checking those things." Wilde told his doctor his arm was "a bit sore" but that everything else seemed okay. "Then two hours later I'm getting the full report of the extent of the injuries and I was like 'oh dear'." Dr Mayhew told First Up that it didn't take him long to decide he needed to get to Tokyo. "I got a phone call Sunday afternoon and by Sunday night it was pretty clear it was pretty serious and then made the call to fly to Tokyo that next morning." Getting Wilde surgery on his shoulder in a timely manner became the biggest concern. "Can we get the surgery, when can we get it, how can we get it, and the longer we leave it the riskier it would be for his long-term outcomes. "They [the doctors in Japan] sort of really wanted to wait for about three weeks to allow the ribs and lungs to heal... that's all well and good if he wasn't trying to become an elite triathlete again but it was really concerning about leaving his shoulder in a state without being repaired for three weeks because what happens is it can really seize up... "We didn't really want that shoulder joint to have long-term issues or arthritic issues because it took too long to be put back into a good place and surgically repaired." Hayden Wilde in May. Photo: Hayden Wilde Dr Mayhew helped advocate for Wilde and sorted out the logistics of getting him cleared for an emergency medical flight to Belgium - a week later the surgery was performed. Dr Mayhew, who has worked with Wilde for a number of years, said he was professional in everything he did. "I think probably within about two hours of getting to Tokyo and seeing what the status was, he was already talking about you know X, Y, and Z in terms of rehab and what he needs to do and that means lining up physios, lining up rehab centres. "His brain was already switched on about 'what do I need to do, what are the one percents I can do everyday to be that little bit better' through the rehab and recovery. "He's got a massive team around him that helps with this but it really is led by Hayden and it's really amazing how quickly he could switch from 'okay this sucks but I'm going to get on with it and do something about it'." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
an hour ago
- RNZ News
Rural Tasman highways drop to 80km/h
McShane Road in Richmond has also dropped to 50km/h from 80km/h. Photo: Max Frethey / LDR Several key rural roads across Tasman have had their speed limits dropped. As of Monday, the Motueka Valley and Moutere Highways, as well as Dovedale, Edwards, and Neudorf Roads, have fallen from 100km/h to 80km/h. In Richmond, McShane Road has also lowered to 50km/h from 80km/h, while Lower Queen Street immediately northeast of McShane saw sections drop to 50km/h and 60km/h from 60km/h and 80km/h. These reductions come after speed limits were reduced and variable limits installed around several schools in late July and earlier in August. The lower speed limits are expected to reduce the number of crashes in the district, especially on the two local highways, which are some of Tasman's most crash-prone roads. Reducing speeds on targeted roads around the district has been a challenge for the council after a government rule change largely invalidated its original speed plan, forcing it to re-consult on the changes and frustrating many local communities who have been wanting the changes for years. "It's great to see that these important changes are finally in place to help keep our communities safer," said Jane Murray, Tasman District Council transportation planning advisor. She likened road safety to Swiss cheese. "Each safety measure - like road design, vehicle safety, or driver behaviour - acts as a layer of protection, but no layer has no holes. Crashes happen when the holes in the layers line up," she said. "Safe speeds are a vital layer. They help prevent crashes and reduce harm when crashes happen. Even if other safety measures fail, safe speeds can save lives." Drivers should watch out for the new speed signs, especially near schools where 30km/h speeds now applied during pick-up and drop-off times, she added. About 300 signs needed to be replaced for the speed limit reductions. Several key rural roads across the Tasman District have dropped from 100km/h to 80km/h. Photo: Max Frethey / LDR While the council aimed to align the changing signs with the official implementation dates, some were put up earlier which led to confusion and anger from some residents. "We've been working with Police on this and appreciate everyone's patience," Murray said. Senior sergeant Christopher Brooks, Tasman District road policing manager, warns motorists to drive to the conditions and take particular care of the changed speed limits. "The posted speed limit is just that - a limit - not a target," he said. "Even a small change in speed makes a big difference to injury severity in a crash - for you and everyone else involved. Motorists should expect to be stopped by Police anytime, anywhere." Brooks added that there was an increase in the number of roadworks happening locally after the recent severe weather and reminded drivers to follow directions and respect workers. "Reduced speed limits are a warning that there is a hazard on or near the road approaching. Whether you're heading out of town or staying local, we want you to get to your destination safely." The council will be considering a second phase of speed limit reductions on Thursday, which would affect narrow or winding unsealed roads, rural residential and peri-urban streets, urban roads without footpaths, along with other specific roads around the district. If approved, those changes will be made between 2026 and 2028. Lowering speed limits around the district has been difficult for Tasman after its regional speed plan was largely invalidated by a government rule change. Local Democracy Reporting is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
