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 Press
Release
May
21,
2002
Contact:
CDC
Office
on
Smoking
and
Health
(770)
488–5493
Esai
Morales
Joins
National
Campaign
to
Reduce
Smoking
Among
Hispanics:
"NYPD
Blue"
Star
Will
Use
Personal
Experience
to
Educate
Community
The
Centers
for
Disease
Control
and
Prevention
unveiled
new
television
public
service
announcements
today
starring
and
directed
by
Esai
Morales
of
NYPD
Blue
and
PBS'
American
Family.
The
PSAs
are
part
of
a
CDC
initiative
aimed
at
decreasing
tobacco
use
in
the
Hispanic
community.
"Lung
cancer
is
the
leading
cause
of
cancer
deaths
among
Hispanics,
therefore
the
tragic
consequences
of
smoking
are
felt
widely
in
the
Hispanic
community,"
said
Secretary
of
Health
and
Human
Services
Tommy
Thompson.
"We
are
excited
that
Mr.
Morales
will
be
joining
the
effort
to
reduce
the
number
of
lives
adversely
affected
by
smoking-related
illness
and
disability."
The
PSAs
are
based
on
Morales'
personal
experience
as
the
child
of
a
smoker.
They
chronicle
how
as
a
young
boy
he
would
hide
cigarettes
from
his
mother
hoping
to
convince
her
to
quit
smoking.
The
30-
and
60-second
spots
are
presented
in
both
English
and
Spanish,
and
will
be
made
available
to
English
and
Spanish
television
stations
this
summer.
"I'm
proud
of
these
PSAs
and
I'm
honored
to
help
the
Hispanic
community
on
this
issue,"
said
Morales.
"Smoking
and
smoking-related
illness
have
a
devastating
effect
on
all
of
us,
especially
our
children.
I
look
forward
to
using
my
visibility
to
help
more
families
like
mine
quit
smoking."
Morales
will
communicate
his
tobacco
prevention
and
health
messages
through
media
interviews
and
personal
appearances.
In
addition
to
the
PSAs,
Morales
will
appear
on
educational
posters
for
the
campaign.
Smoking
is
responsible
for
87
percent
of
the
lung
cancer
deaths
in
the
United
States.
In
1997,
20.4
percent
of
Hispanic
adults
smoked
cigarettes.
In
addition,
CDC
has
found
that
babies
and
children
who
are
exposed
to
tobacco
smoke
have
more
ear
infections
and
asthma
and
higher
death
rates
from
SIDS
(Sudden
Infant
Death
Syndrome),
and
that
mothers
who
smoke
during
pregnancy
are
more
likely
to
have
low-birth-weight
babies.
In
addition,
smoking
is
the
leading
preventable
cause
of
premature
death
in
the
United
States,
killing
an
estimated
440,000
Americans
per
year.
Esai
Morales
is
a
familiar
face
on
both
the
large
and
small
screens.
He
currently
stars
as
Lieutenant
Tony
Rodriguez
on
ABC's
NYPD
Blue,
and
also
has
a
recurring
role
on
PBS'
American
Family
and
Showtime's
Resurrection
Boulevard.
Morales
began
his
film
career
in
1983
with
the
prison
drama
Bad
Boys
with
Sean
Penn
and
was
propelled
to
fame
in
1987
with
La
Bamba.
He
co-starred
with
Jimmy
Smits
and
Edward
James
Olmos
in
Gregory
Nava's
My
Family/Mi
Familia
in
1995.
Morales
grew
up
in
New
York
City,
where
he
spoke
only
Spanish
until
the
age
of
5.
He
has
worked
with
a
number
of
causes
over
the
course
of
his
career,
including
co-founding
the
National
Hispanic
Foundation
for
the
Arts,
which
works
to
improve
the
opportunity
and
image
of
Hispanics
in
front
of
as
well
as
behind
the
camera.
In
conjunction
with
these
PSAs,
CDC
has
posted
information
about
tobacco
prevention
for
the
Hispanic
community
in
English
and
Spanish
on
their
Web
site,
www.cdc.gov/tobacco.
Esai
Morales
TV
spots
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If you are interested in using the
free
posters or TV spot in a
counter
marketing
campaign
please contact the
Media Campaign Resource Center
(MCRC) at CDC's Office on
Smoking and Health, Mail stop K-50 4770 Buford Highway, NE, Atlanta, GA, 30341-3717;
phone (770) 488-5705,
press 2.
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