title: Wanna know about vaping? Patterns of message exposure, seeking and sharing information about e-cigarettes across media platforms.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Awareness and use of electronic cigarettes has rapidly grown in the USA recently, in step with increased product marketing. Using responses to a population survey of US adults, we analysed demographic patterns of exposure to, searching for and sharing of e-cigarette-related information across media platforms.
  
  
  METHODS
  An online survey of 17,522 US adults was conducted in 2013. The nationally representative sample was drawn from GfK Group's KnowledgePanel plus off-panel recruitment. Fixed effects logit models were applied to analyse relationships between exposure to, searching for and sharing of e-cigarette-related information and demographic characteristics, e-cigarette and tobacco use, and media behaviours.
  
  
  RESULTS
  High levels of awareness about e-cigarettes were indicated (86% aware; 47% heard through media channels). Exposure to e-cigarette-related information was associated with tobacco use, age, gender, more education, social media use and time spent online. Although relatively small proportions of the sample had searched for (∼5%) or shared (∼2%) e-cigarette information, our analyses indicated demographic patterns to those behaviours. Gender, high income and using social media were associated with searching for e-cigarette information; lesbian, gay and bisexual and less education were associated with sharing. Current tobacco use, age, being Hispanic and time spent online were associated with both searching and sharing.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  US adults are widely exposed to e-cigarette marketing through the media; such marketing may differentially target specific demographic groups. Further research should longitudinally examine how exposure to, searching for and sharing of e-cigarette information relate to subsequent use of e-cigarettes and/or combustible tobacco.
authors.affiliation: Health Media Collaboratory, Institute for Health Research and Policy, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA.
authors.forename: Sherry L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Emery
authors.affiliation: Moores Cancer Center, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA.
authors.forename: Lisa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Vera
authors.affiliation: Health Media Collaboratory, Institute for Health Research and Policy, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA.
authors.forename: Jidong
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: Health Media Collaboratory, Institute for Health Research and Policy, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA.
authors.forename: Glen
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Szczypka
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003625:Data Collection; D066300:Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems; D005260:Female; D006630:Hispanic or Latino; D006801:Humans; D033181:Information Dissemination; D057226:Information Seeking Behavior; D020407:Internet; D008297:Male; D040541:Marketing; D008402:Mass Media; D008875:Middle Aged; D009538:Nicotine / Q000008:administration & dosage; D012737:Sex Factors; D019529:Sexuality; D012907:Smoking; D061108:Social Media; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D062789:Tobacco Products; D014481:United States; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D009538:Nicotine
keywords: Advertising and Promotion; Electronic nicotine delivery devices; Media