public relations

Most people with a finger on the pulse of pop culture (and I'm guessing that includes you if you're reading this) know that the new season of AMC's Mad Men premiered on Sunday. Now, for those of you who are waiting for it to come out on DVD, fear not: This is our weekly advertising forum, so no plot spoilers will be revealed here. I want to talk instead about the ways in which advertising is being dealt with within the show so far. (If you're interested in a plot discussion though, I like Slate's TV Club. Good stuff.) Now, on to the advertising!

The ubiquity of commercial cigarettes in the United States is a 20th century phenomenon. In large part, the massive popularity of cigarettes in the United States can be traced back to their rationing to soldiers during World War I and World War II. The cigarette's rise in popularity amongst women, however, is a different story all together. In this special edition of Adventures in Feministory, we're taking a look at how flappers, Freud, feminism and fashion transformed the perception and popularity of women cigarette smokers.