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The Plain Truth Media Campaign
A series of television and radio ads aimed at reducing initiation of tobacco use in North Dakota
youth were aired for 13 weeks from September to December 2003 in the mid-western and western parts
of North Dakota. The theme of the series was The Plain Truth. Following the campaign, we conducted
an evaluation survey of 391 girls and boys aged 12-17 including 58 American Indian youth to determine
how North Dakota youth perceived the ads' effectiveness, which of the ad types were most effective,
and additional information about North Dakota youth attitudes and experiences related to tobacco.
We found that the television ad Artery and the radio ad ABC were recalled best by both white and
American Indian youth. Both boys and girls found the television ad Artery most effective. Among
the radio ads, boys rated ABC highest, whereas girls rated Joe DoBoer highest. Our analysis of
ethnic differences showed that both Artery and ABC were found equally effective by American Indian
and white youth. Our findings indicate that ads depicting graphic health harms from tobacco may
be more memorable and perceived as more effective than other types of ads.
For more information about the results of this project, see:
Vogeltanz-Holm, N., Holm, J. E., White Plume, J., & Poltavski, D. (June 2009, epub ahead of print).
Confirmed Recall and Perceived Effectiveness of Tobacco Countermarketing Media in Rural Youth.
Prevention Science.
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FIRES:
The sound of a heartbeat in the background emphasizes the dramatic
impact of the words spoken in this television ad. Over images
of model Christy Turlington looking concerned or rubbing her temples we hear her saying
words, such as "AIDS, drug abuse, fires, suicides..."
and so forth. Ms. Turlington then informs viewers that smoking kills more
people than car crashes, drug abuse, suicide, homicide, and fires combined.
The strategy of this ad is to have real people present credible testimonials
to inform youth of tobacco industry practices and of health consequences of
tobacco use. The key message is that tobacco use is dangerous, addictive,
and deadly. Click on the screen below to play the video.
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Fires Video
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ARTERY:
This advertisement starts with a smoker lighting up and the
viewer graphically and dramatically follows the smoke down into the lungs.
The ad then cuts to a doctor removing fatty deposits from the aorta of a
deceased 32-year-old smoker. The ad explains that every cigarette causes
you damage and that smoking damages the heart and cardiovascular system.
This spot is extremely graphic and uses the strategy of stark and frightening
images, graphics, or language to underscore the dangers of tobacco use.
The key message in this spot is that tobacco use is dangerous, addictive,
and deadly. Click on the screen below to play the video.
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Artery Video
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BUCKING BRONCO:
This ad opens with the phrase "ever wonder why horses
buck?" while the viewer watches a cowboy working with a horse that continues
to buck. As other cowboys chew tobacco and spit into the mud, the horse tries
feverishly to avoid the mess and the rider tries desperately to avoid being
thrown. Finally, the rider is thrown and lands in the mud created by the
tobacco spit. The ad concludes with a young man explaining that tobacco is
a "tumor-causing, teeth-staining, smelly pukey habit." The strategy of this
spot is to combine humor with the clear and graphic images that depict
smokeless tobacco use as gross and unappealing. The key message is that
smokeless tobacco is gross, dangerous, addictive, and deadly. This ad has a
clear western theme and includes actors that appear to be of Native American
descent. Click on the screen below to play the video.
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Bucking Bronco Video
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COLD BLOODED:
This television spot shows an executive driving an expensive
car and hitting a young bicyclist and some pedestrians, while he is talking
on his cell phone and discussing marketing strategies, sales figures, and
saying that profit is all he cares about. The spot concludes by showing the
viewer that the license plate on the car reads "TOBACCO" and then a graphic
appears revealing that "tobacco companies make billions selling a product
that killed 4.9 million last year." The strategy used in this ad is to remind
consumers, especially young consumers, that the tobacco industry exploits them
to sell a product that is addictive, dangerous, and deadly. The key message
is that the tobacco industry makes a large profit from a product that kills
people. Click on the screen below to play the video.
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Coldblooded Video
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STILL CAN'T QUIT:
A teen sits anxiously in a hospital examination room.
The teen introduces himself as Jeff Sprague, a 15-year-old who started smoking
at age 11. He says that he is addicted to cigarettes; in fact, he was addicted
three weeks after he started. He now has spots on his lungs that could turn
into cancer. This scares him and yet he still can't quit. This television
spot's strategy is to have real people present credible testimonials to
inform youth of tobacco industry practices and of health consequences of
tobacco use. The key message contained in this spot is that tobacco use is
dangerous, addictive, and deadly. Click on the screen below to play the video.
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Still Can't Quit Video
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ABC:
Bob Mehrman, a man who once worked as a radio
announcer,presents a testimonial regarding the health consequences of smoking.
Due to smoking-related throat cancer, Mr. Mehrman lost his larynx. Speaking
through his electro-larynx, he warns listeners not to smoke. This radio
spot's strategy is to have real people present credible testimonials to
inform youth of tobacco industry practices and of health consequences of
tobacco use. The key message in this spot is that smoking can damage you
even if it doesn't kill you.
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Bob Merman
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JOE DOBOER:
Joe is a 17-year-old who started chewing tobacco at age 11.
He vividly describes the consequences of his tobacco use - loosing his
taste buds, the tobacco eating away his gums, and finally the pre-cancerous
lumps growing in his mouth. He finishes by saying that even though he has
now quit and the pre-cancerous lumps have receded, he still has to get
checked every 6 months for the rest of his life. The spot concludes with the
phrase: "tumor-causing, teeth-staining, smelly, pukey habit." This radio
spot's strategy is to have real people present credible testimonials to
inform youth of the addictive nature of smokeless tobacco and its health
consequences. The key message contained in this spot is that smokeless
tobacco use is dangerous, addictive, and deadly.
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Joe Doboer
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NAPKIN:
This radio spot's voiceover begins by describing a smoker coughing up
blood into a napkin. Later, while driving home, the smoker lights up again
and hears a commercial on the radio talking about the side effects of smoking
such as gangrene and impotence. The spot then goes into emphysema and how
when you get it, you slowly suffocate -- and how you start coughing up blood
and then pieces of lung. The spot's strategy is to use stark and frightening
images, graphics, or language to underscore the dangers of tobacco use.
The key message is that the adverse health effects from smoking can occur
at any age. |
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Napkin
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WANNA COME OVER:
An adolescent girl calls her friend Brad to see if he
wants to come over and hang out with a bunch of friends at the pool. Brad very
matter-of-factly replies that while it sounds like it could be fun, the
girl's breath, hair, and yellow fingers are so unappealing that he would
rather just stay home alone. This radio spot's strategy is to appeal to a
person's sense of pride in his/her personal appearance by illustrating the
ways smoking can negatively affect his/her looks. The key message in this
spot is that tobacco use is gross and makes the user gross and undesirable.
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Wanna Come Over
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THANK YOU:
A tobacco industry executive is offering his heartfelt yet facetious
thanks to the teens of the United States who continue to initiate the smoking
habit despite compelling evidence that smoking causes illness and death.
This radio spot's strategy is to educate consumers, especially young consumers,
about the deceptive strategies used by the tobacco industry in the United
States and/or around the world. The key message is that the tobacco industry
uses marketing strategies intended to manipulate youth.
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Thank You
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