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Ad policy leaves much to be seen
By Cathy Kropp
Super Bowl time is sneaking up on us again and with it comes controversy about the advertisements that air around the game.
Last year, the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) spent nearly $3.4 million for two 30-second spots. The ads, which were meant to target young adults, implied that using drugs supported terrorism.
These ads were heavily criticized, not only because they were misleading, but also because the effectiveness of the ads on drug use was debatable. The University of Michigan's "Monitoring the Future" survey shows an 11 percent decrease in drug use by eighth, 10th, and 12th graders over the last two years. White House officials attribute some of the decline to the ONDCP ad campaign. But a study commissioned by the National Institute on Drug Abuse shows that the ads have a "favorable effect" on parents but little to no effect on young adults (who are the target audience).
This year, controversy surrounds not only the fact that the ONDCP has purchased ad time during the Super Bowl again, but also because CBS is running these ads while turning down other ads because they are of a "controversial" nature. Moveon.org, an organization with the goal of "bringing ordinary people back into politics," attempted to purchase a 30-second spot during the Super Bowl, which they would use to air a clip that criticizes the Bush administration and its handling of the federal deficit.
CBS refused to sell them the spot, saying that the ad violated their policy of not running ads on "controversial issues of public importance." Yet, the ONDCP was able to purchase time to air their ads about drug control. I assume CBS sees the war on drugs as cut and dry and not controversial at all.
How can CBS justify selling advertising time to one controversial group and not to another? CBS needs to decide what their policy is and then apply it equally in all situations.
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