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Smoking kills? Your appetite!
by Christel van Hoof
On 15th August the NSW government launched the latest graphic anti-tobacco advertisement, sending out the message that smoking kills.
As mentioned in this article in The Age [1]of 16th August, the $1 million campaign is a montage of shocking images that are used in anti-smoking campaigns over the last 10 years.
According to former NSW Assistant Health Minister Verity Firth, the hard hitting TV commercials have had a major influence in the decline of smokers over the past decade.
“The smoking rate in NSW has dropped from 24% to around 18% in the last ten years, that’s around 290,000 less smokers today than in 1997,” Ms Firth said.
Although these smoking campaigns might be successful, I really wonder if it is necessary to broadcast them on national television. The commercials are very graphic and don’t leave anything to the imagination. By broadcasting them on prime time television every viewer, whether a smoker or not, is exposed to the same horrifying images.
Let’s look at the facts. According to the government, about 15 % of the Australians smoke. Based on the assumption that the TV audience represents the average Australian, the smoke commercial only applies to 1 out of 7 viewers. The rest of the viewers involuntary have to see what future lies ahead for their smoking friends and family.
What actually surprises me most about the ad is that they don’t warn the viewer at the beginning of the commercial. Several times the commercial was aired during dinner time and basically ruined my appetite.
The footage is officially classified “M” which means it is recommended for mature audiences by the classification board. This same board has classified Gordon Ramsey’s “Kitchen Nightmares USA” M15+ which means, not suitable for people 15 years and younger. Now let’s be honest folks, Gordon’s F word may not be appreciated by everyone, it is clearly not as shocking as rotten feet, slipped arteries and the inside of a brain.
You must have lived underground for the past decade not to know that smoking is bad for you and I therefore wonder if these kinds of commercials are necessary to grab smokers’ attention. According to Darren Dahl, writer of the article “Does it pay to shock”, shock advertisements are the best way for advertisers to break through the clutter and purposely shock its audience.
I think we all agree that the government has succeeded in shocking the audience but the question is whether this is their job. 15 % of us make a deliberate choice to smoke and therefore take a risk to die early .But what about people who voluntarily skydive, drive a car, drink alcohol, ride a bike, climb mountains, eat junk food, swim in the ocean or wash windows at 40 storey building?
All these activities might be dangerous but isn’t that the risk of life? If we would all live our lives as monks in a monastery it would be a pretty boring society and we would all be broke by paying thousands of dollars on aged care because we would all turn 100!
If you haven’t seen the commercial yet and have become curious, take a look [2]and judge for yourself.