Yeah, but I feel those images would be downplayed by the real life situation of hanging out at coffee shops filled with the thick haze of the smoke from them and their friends. Or the fun times hanging outside on one’s back porch with their friends smoking. Or driving in the car, listening to the radio, smoking. Or at a concert, having a good time smoking. Or any other real life situation where people aren’t treated like lepers because they smoke. I’m sorry, but people don’t get treated rudely by non-smokers in public, or at least not to the extent that it would effect anyone’s choice to smoke. Many social interractions revolve around smoking. Shit, the majority of the people I met in college right off the bat was by hanging out at “The Slab,” which was the little patio in front of the dorm where all the smokers came to congregate. They’re a great conversation started, a wonderful way to meet people, and just part of everyday life.
And I’m a non-smoker.
Showing people getting ousted by restaraunts or accosted by people on the street for smoking is a bad idea in my opinion, because it’s in no way realistic. That sort of thing doesn’t happen in real life. I’ll bet you 99% of the time, if you get approached by someone on the street or in a public area while smoking, it will be to bum a cig. Those style ads would be just as ineffective.
As for targeting homeless people, it’s actually a good idea. Alcohol and cigarettes are comforts for many people. Homeless people aren’t likely to save up their money in order to get an apartment, or buy a car, or anything else big like that. What they’ll spend it on is simple things and immediate gratifications for the most part (i.e. food, beer, clothes, smokes). I don’t have any hard facts to back that statement up, just the everyday experience of seeing the same panhandlers on the same street courners at virtually every intersection here in Austin. Sure, many of them may have squats to stay in, but I doubt any of them have a bank account for savings.
The dumbest Truth ad I’ve seen is the latest copy of Spin. It shows an oversized copy of a letter on a boardwalk, with some sentences highlighted. I think it was about putting the blame for today’s social ills on AIDS or something. It made absolutely NO sense whatsoever.
SonOfArizona, me and my friends agree with you on the Truth ads. There was a few radio spots that was about the same thing you described. Those weren’t particually effective either. You’re right about one thing: We (as in teenagers) are very selfish. Saying that a cigarette company screwed someone over back in the 70s won’t work to get us to not smoke. The fact that about half of my friends smoke (despite many warning against smoking, the Truth ads, and Texas’ fairly serious laws against anyone under 18 smoking) is evidence of that.
It still shocks me that they targeted homeless people, like they go into a store and pick one particular brand… Even if some might actually be buying packs after getting some change from begging or whatever, the picture I have in my head is homeless are being given cigarettes by people in the street. Do I make sense ?!
Well, I’m fifteen and I think those ads are incredibly annoying. Obviously, they’re doing something wrong. I think a more effective approach would be the humorous type ads from a few years ago like Joe Chemo and “I miss my lung, Bob” - my classmates still remember them after all this time. However, I think it would be very difficult to find an ad campain that would affect teen smoking at all, since those who start now don’t seem to care about the consequences. Then again, I don’t have a lot of pity for them since they know the dangers and start anyway.
The Memory Hole linked to an interesting article about these ads.
LA Weekly says:
My suggestion for an effective ‘truth’ ad would be a hidden camera of one of my company’s brainstorming sessions for a tobacco ad campaign, without any extra commentary. Even though 90% of the office smokes, the cynical comments, insults and jokes we swap about the target audience are mean enough to get a Pit thread closed. Maybe showing teens that even the people selling you the product think you’re an f’ing idiot would leave an impression.
In truth’s defense, I think the goal is to understop underage and/or non-smokers from smoking, or, more importantly, starting.
I do agree that some of their commercials are ineffective and rather annoying, though.
I think you’ve nailed it there.
Every time I see one of these ads, I’m reminded of the kids at my college who will protest about anything at the drop of a hat. They see a tiny problem, immediately blame it on “the big multinational corporations,” and start yelling about it in the streets. I find it very difficult to take them seriously.
There’s a new commercial where they have 1200 people play dead in front of some nameless skyscraper dubbed the offices of some tobacco company.
It’s very lame and tired. I thought it would’ve been much cooler if they used real cadavers.
The TRUTH add’s don’t make me want to smoke they make me want to kill someone. They only remind me that how fragile life is and how people every day take advantage of simple people who don’t know anybetter. They say smoking cause’s cancer, ever shaken someones hand? Ever taken a nice deep breath of air in the morning? Have you ever sat down and contemplated something? DUH! Everything can cause cancer even thinking to yourself. Plus im a firm believer that unless you yourself only have experienced it you have no room to talk. And something tells me that all the people for the truth ad’s have never smoked a “cancer stick” in there miserable, short, insignificant lives.
Sorry I’ve been needing to get that out for a while now.
Do you have any idea how many people lie on those polls to make themselves look better? Also I’ve never trusted exect’s the’ll do what ever makes them money, not what’s morally right. And something else, THEIR TEENAGERS! They don’t know what the hell their doing. Im a teenager I know (no pun intended).
One more thing: There’s always going to be somebody who doesn’t agree with smoking and there will always be somebody bitching about it “Opinions are like ass holes, everyone’s got one”
Ok Im done now:o
Now THAT is some SERIOUS hair splitting. :dubious:
You get a dollar everytime someone says the ads make them want to smoke?
Hmmmmm…
Maybe we can work out a scam…er…deal! 
Thinking causes cancer?!
And to think, I always thought the phrase “My algebra class is killing me” was only a metaphor!
My tenth grade biology teacher stopped me from smoking. I was just starting to experiment with it, thinking it made me look all cool and shit.
One day, he brought in two sets of preserved human lungs that he had gotten Og knows where. One was from a non-smoker killed in an accident, one was from someone who had smoked about a pack a day for most of his life and had died from lung cancer. The lungs had been dissected and prepared so that he could open them very easily. He opened up the normal lungs and showed us the structure and how it all worked.
Then he opened up the smoker’s lungs. About half the class immediately threw up everything but their kneecaps and toenails. His sole comment was along the lines of, “Bet this guy thought he looked cool when he smoked.”
I don’t think anyone in that class ever smoked. If they had already started, they quit that day. I know I damn sure did.
I know I am gonna get boots thrown at me but back in 2000 there was a TRUTH add that I actually liked. They were hauling body bags onto a beach for some reason or another. It had a really catchy background score, I wish I knew what it was called. The thing that made that add good was the fact that no one said a single word throughout the entire thing IRC.
As far as the reason why these or any other adds will never really work - they go against the “find something you really enjoy doing and do it no matter what” theme that is emphasized over and over again in just about every modern book/movie/whatever. Every enjoyable past time has a price its whether or not you are “cool” or “hardcore” enough to do it anyway.
Ok dunno what you lot are doing this weekend but I am definitely swinging by my local hookah bar.
I got basically the same presentation when I was in school – but it happened when I was in the 5th grade.
This guy came in with a slideshow (back when slide shows were done with real slides), showing all these gory pictures of lung cancer, throat cancer, lip cancer from a guy who dangled cigars out of one side of his mouth, etc… He convinced every one of us young, impressionable 10-year-olds that people who smoke all die at the ripe old age of 44.
THAT IS HILARIOUS! Wish I’d thought of it. :smack:
cantstandya, welcome to the SDMB. Please take a moment to read the “Forum Rules”. We ask that you do not post to very old threads in Cafe Society unless you have something new to add. As your post is pretty much a “ditto”, I’m going to go ahead and close this one.