Cheeky Bloody Nostrils Discuss Booger Sugar

With cocaine usage on the rise in the UK, England’s Department of Health, via Mother London, began airing two new TV spots last week tagged “There’s a darker side to coke.” In the lead spot, Pablo the drug mule dog (he’s well known in the UK from previous anti-drug spots) confronts a skinny young sniffer’s who’s just powdered his nose, which causes the lad’s nostrils to verbally flare up. As far as government-sponsored drug ads go, it’s not bad, and definitely less preachy then the DOH’s pathetic anti-cannabis effort from earlier this year. Jump for some English humour, and a second spot which simply features a heart with a funny voice, dying. Read more »

By Copyranter on October 19, 2009 at 11:00 am
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Another Drug Lesson From Government Dad

AboveTheInfluence, the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy’s website created during the tenure of former coke fiend George W. Bush, has just released another video from on high that talks to teens like they’re complete fucking morons. The spot, by the NYC office of mcgarrybowen (who have some really annoying new age music at their website) is titled “Human Puppet.” Ah yes, the olde subtle YOU ARE NOT IN CONTROL metaphor. Previously, the clueless Office used slug and bug imagery to tsk tsk tempted teens. Here, the sound bites from the friend actors—”what is she on?”, “she’s gonna have such a headache in the morning”—are so pathetically forced. And besides, if those boys were really the girl’s friends, they would have taken pictures of her with their balls resting on her nose. |Video: Ypsilon2|

By Copyranter on June 16, 2009 at 11:30 am
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UK Anti-Spliff Spot A Whiff

Here, we have the latest example of what we get when governments do anti-drug ads aimed at teens—weak, preachy parental messages that talk down to kids and treat them like utter morons (or slugs and bugs). The sign off line of this anti-cannabis spot which began airing last night in England is, “The more you mess with cannabis, the more it messes with your mind.” Thanks Mr. health teacher! Uh, can Billy and I go to the bathroom? Also, despite being produced by Mother, an ad agency with a pretty good creative reputation, the spot employs one of the hackiest devices one learns in the first semester of ad school to always avoid: the visual label. Basically the commercial is a bloody mess. Related: NYC’s unintentionally-hilarious anti-drug phone kiosk campaign.
|Video: Brand Republic|

By Copyranter on February 17, 2009 at 11:01 am
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“Smoking In The Boardroom…”

Hey, every business team could use a young, well-groomed firestarter, right? Some of you will remember the first ad in this comical new NYC anti-drug phone kiosk campaign where no passersby would help a poor kid tie off his arm. Here, I’m assuming Junior Exec is chasing the white dragon, since crystal meth is again the only drug mentioned by name in that ridiculous copy block with three fucking phone numbers and 11 fucking logos that—I guarantee you—is being read by absolutely NO ONE. Anyway, I don’t know about you all, but come 2-3 in the weekday pm…I’m ready for a couple of fucking hits of Tina. And the rest of those lame-ass team members—I’m talking to you, bearded douchebag—look like they’re ripe for the pipe, too.
Photo: Copyranter himself (snapped in “The Heights”)
(Click to enlarge)

By Copyranter on August 5, 2008 at 11:00 am
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