Anybody care to let me in on the purpose behind Philip Morris’s new TV ads full of young, level-headed non-smoking teens? “Talk to us about smoking.” “No, I just didn’t like it.” “You don’t have to smoke to be cool.” I am utterly baffled by what message they think they’re trying to get across. Surely they don’t think we’ll actually buy the idea that they DON’T want teens to start using tobacco???
Government-mandated ads. They’re crap. They’re not even putting effort into them.
While on the subject of public service announcements, I was wondering if anyone’s ever seen this one (no one else I know had):
Man and woman, wearing only underwear. Lying down on a big ol’ mess of white sheets. They start sucking face and getting jiggy wid it.
Suddenly, the bed is filled with other people, men and women, crawling toward them. They look around, alarmed. Then they look down. Around their ankles are shackles, connected to all the other men and women with clear tubing, kinda like a chain gang. Blood starts to run between the tubes.
You guessed it, HIV ad. Now, it was pretty creepy, but also made an impression on me, and I would have thought it’d be effective. But I’ve only seen it once. Anyone know the ad I’m talking about? Seen it?
I’ve never seen that HIV ad, but the description you gave just gave me the willies. I’m all for PSA’s, but yoinks! I know there’s a message to be gotten across, and I know the trend now is towards in-your-face advertising, but must you be so in my face that my nose gets broken?
I hadn’t seen that one, either, but I have noticed Phillip Morris’ ads about how much they help battered women’s shelters.
The Philip Morris ads aren’t actually government mandated; they’re an attempt to do some image repairs. And perhaps they actually mean well; anything’s possible.
The most effective public service announcement I ever saw was an underwater shot up through a swimming pool. Then a fully dressed woman jumps into the pool and swims toward the camera with a horrified look on her face. It was an ad for pool safety for toddlers with the slogan “It only takes a second.” Creeped me out.
Catrandom
The tobacco industry ads to prevent teen smoking are liable to be about as effective as non-tobacco industry ads, because they both use the same ineffective approach: have some teenage Judas goat say, “Smoking isn’t cool, duuuuude.”
Kids see right through it.
And in similar vein, OP probably well dealt with, has anybody else seen this ad? Could be local only…guy straps self into bungee harness, stands on the edge of a bridge, chugs a carton of milk and dives off the side. We watch the bungee pay out and ultimately flip off, being unsecured at this end. [Insert medium thumping noise.] Screen goes black. “Got Jesus?” Some sort of community church ad, I’ve never laughed so hard.
My theory is that PM is making the anti-smoking ads so bad that no one could possibly take them seriously. Actually, Lorillard had a good one where a teenager was getting a tongue piercing in a back alley, and the guy that was doing it offered him a cigarette afterwards. The kid’s response: “What, do you think I’m crazy?”
I’ve also seen the Got Jesus? ad a few times, and it’s one of my personal favorites. It’s right up there with the Nutcracker ad for one of the Army Men games…
I have a confession… I am a typical teenage moron. I didn’t start smoking because an ad told me to… the ads are just as transparent as the Phillip-Morris ads. I started smoking because my friends were smoking, and I was curious. When I had my first cigarette, I got such a strong buzz that I nearly fell over. It left me feeling good for hours!
The problem was that the effects slowly became less pronounced… then one day, I realized that I HAD to have a cigarette. I didn’t want it for the mind-boggling buzz; It’s necesary to keep from stressing out from a day of school. I know I’ll have to quit some time later on. I just never expected to get addicted on 2-3 cigarettes a day.
P.S. the sad part is I didn’t start till I was 18.