A cigarette is a small cylinder of finely cut tobacco leaves rolled in thin paper for smoking. The cigarette is ignited at one end and allowed to smoulder; its smoke is inhaled from the other end, which is held in or to the mouth; in some cases, a cigarette holder may be used, as well. Most modern manufactured cigarettes are filtered and also include reconstituted tobacco and other additives.
The term cigarette, as commonly used, refers to a tobacco cigarette, but can apply to similar devices containing other substances, such as cloves or cannabis. A cigarette is distinguished from a cigar by its smaller size, use of processed leaf, and paper wrapping, which is normally white, though other colors and flavors are also available. Cigars are typically composed entirely of whole-leaf tobacco.
Rates of cigarette smoking vary widely throughout the world and have changed considerably since cigarettes were first widely used in the mid-19th century. While rates of smoking have over time leveled off or declined in the developed world, they continue to rise in developing nations.
A television advertisement (variously called a television commercial, commercial or ad in American English, and known in British English as an advert) is a span of television programming produced and paid for by an organization, which conveys a message, typically to market a product or service. Advertising revenue provides a significant portion of the funding for most privately owned television networks. The vast majority of television advertisements today consist of brief advertising spots, ranging in length from a few seconds to several minutes (as well as program-length infomercials). Advertisements of this sort have been used to promote a wide variety of goods, services and ideas since the beginning of television.
The effects of television advertising upon the viewing public (and the effects of mass media in general) have been the subject of philosophical discourse by such luminaries as Marshall McLuhan. The viewership of television programming, as measured by companies such as Nielsen Media Research, is often used as a metric for television advertisement placement, and consequently, for the rates charged to advertisers to air within a given network, television program, or time of day (called a "daypart").