Correcting Disinformation About Menthol Cigarettes and Flavored Cigars

The Unvarnished Truth: Pursuing Health Equity by Correcting Disinformation Targeting African Americans About the FDA's Proposed Ban on Menthol Cigarettes and Flavored Cigars

Status

Not yet recruiting

Phases

Unknown

Study type

Interventional

Source

ClinicalTrials.gov

Registry ID

NCT07543081

Enrollment

1000

Registered

2026-04-21

Start date

2026-09-01

Completion date

2028-01-31

Last updated

2026-09-17

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Disinformation, Flavored Cigars, Menthol Cigarettes

Brief summary

Our study tests a multi-level anti- disinformation message (ADM) campaign on menthol cigarette and flavored cigar policies in Black adults.

Detailed description

This study uses a prospective, randomized factorial trial design to evaluate delivery of anti-disinformation messaging (ADM) on Black adults' receptivity to flavored tobacco policies, beliefs about the tobacco industry, and beliefs about menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars. Eligible, consenting participants will complete the baseline survey, providing sociodemographic information and baseline measures of study outcomes. Participants will then be randomized, stratified by study site (Atlanta, GA or Birmingham, AL), in a 1:1 ratio within the survey platform to either the individually-delivered ADM intervention or control condition. Participants in the intervention condition (Intervention-I) will receive their first exposure to the ADM intervention at the end of baseline survey. At follow-up assessments (3-months, 6-months, 9-months, 12-months), all participants will complete study measures and at 3-, 6-, and 9-month follow-up assessments, Intervention-I participants will be exposed to the ADM intervention at the end of the survey. Six months after our first enrollment in the trial, Atlanta will receive the community-delivered ADM intervention, while Birmingham serves as the control community. Community partners in Atlanta, our Intervention Community (Intervention-C), will disseminate our ADM intervention messages through their community networks for 12 months, overlapping at least six months with the delivery of the individual-level intervention (Intervention-I) in our enrolled participants. Upon completion of the final assessment (12-month follow-up), all participants will be exposed to the ADM intervention within the survey platform and asked to complete measures on perceived message effectiveness and credibility of the study messages.

Interventions

BEHAVIORALIndividual delivery of anti-disinformation messaging

Participants in this condition will be exposed to anti-disinformation messages (ADM) designed to increase correct beliefs about menthol cigarettes, flavored cigars, the purpose, and limits of flavored tobacco policies. The delayed intervention control condition in this study will receive the ADM intervention after outcome measures are collected at the last assessment.

BEHAVIORALCommunity delivery of anti-disinformation messaging

Our community-level campaign will distribute our ADM messages to our Intervention Community via social media, print ads and posters, radio ads, and community events. These messages will be delivered over 1 year, with monthly delivery activities led by EAB members in the Intervention Community.

Study design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Intervention model

FACTORIAL

Primary purpose

BASIC_SCIENCE

Masking

NONE

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

ALL

Age

18 Years to No maximum

Healthy volunteers

Yes

Inclusion criteria

* African American or Black adults * Aged 18+ * U.S citizen or U.S. Legal Permanent Resident * Reside in Atlanta, GA or Birmingham, AL * Able to read and speak English * Willing to engage in all online study activities including online quarterly surveys over a 12-month period * Have access to a digital device, laptop, or desktop with internet access to complete online surveys and watch online videos

Exclusion criteria

* Do not identify as African American or Black * Children aged 17 years and younger * Adults who are not a U.S. Citizen or U.S. Legal Permanent Resident * Do not reside in Atlanta, GA or Birmingham, AL * Do not have access to a digital device, laptop, or desktop with internet access o Unwilling or unable to engage in online study activities

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame	Description
Proportion of participants with specific tobacco industry beliefs	3, 6, 9, 12 months	Beliefs items address tobacco industry behaviors, including funding Black community organizations, paying Black lobbyists to oppose public health policies, and targeting Black and African American communities with menthol cigarette and flavored cigar marketing.
Knowledge about menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars	3, 6, 9, 12 months	Items address prevalence of menthol cigarette and flavored cigar use in Black and African Americans and role of menthol/flavors in tobacco initiation, progression, and cessation.
Knowledge of flavored tobacco policies	3, 6, 9, 12 months	Items address the public health purpose and limits of flavored tobacco policies.

Secondary

Measure	Time frame	Description
Intention to support flavored tobacco policies	3, 6, 9, 12 months	Items address plans to support local, state, and federal policies regarding flavored tobacco products.

Countries

United States

Contacts

CONTACTStudy Coordinator

unvarnished@ints.rutgers.edu732-331-0626

PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATORAndrea C Villanti, PhD, MPH

Rutgers University

PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATORKymberle L Sterling, DrPH