Past ‘Just Say No’ Advertising Campaigns Have Been Unsuccessful

President Donald Trump made remarks on combatting drug demand and the opioid crisis in the East Room of the White House, on Thursday October 26th, 2017. (Photo by Cheriss May)(Sipa via AP Images)

WASHINGTON (AP) — A massive advertising campaign is part of the Trump administration’s plan to attack America’s opioid crisis. Yet an AP Fact Check finds that such campaigns in the past have failed to have a strong impact on drug use among the young.

President Donald Trump is focusing on advertising to discourage young people from trying drugs. In declaring opioid overdoses a public health emergency, the president said he thinks “really tough, really big, really great advertising” will become “the most important thing.”

Yet government and academic assessments of “Just Say No”-style messages have repeatedly shown poor results. A study funded by the National Institutes of Health found a nearly $1 billion national campaign designed to discourage use of illegal drugs among young people had no favorable effects on their behavior.

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  1. Trickle down tax cuts, Just Say No, Nuclear build up, and a return to the failed policies of the most damaging presidency in Modern American History. Ronnie Raygun would be so proud. I wonder which one of Trump’s cronies will get this new no bid billion dollar waste of money contract to espouse the evils of drugs. Maybe they can reanimate Nancy for the campaign. I am sure Dr. (Bannon) Frankenfuck has the means.

  2. Well those other “Just Say No” campaigns did not have “really tough, really big, really great advertising” led by President Donald J. Trump. The “don’t take opioids” advertising campaign will be…a complete failure, especially if they don’t put resources toward real prevention and treatment efforts. Limit the supplies, go after the drug companies, doctors and pharmacists who profit off abuse, and then also provide medical and therapeutic treatment. Oh yeah, it’s gonna cost more than $57,000. And don’t take money from HIV/AIDS or other programs where it’s needed. It’s been declared a public health emergency - new appropriations of all necessary funding must be part of any real effort to do anything. But, that’s where we gotta wonder how serious they really are.

  3. Yup, go to the source and strangle big pharma and cut this off at the knees. Reagan failed to put a stop to the ephedra pouring into the country and instead relied on ineffectual advertising to solve the meth problem which did absolutely nothing. I’m sure the private prison industry is very happy with his decision.

  4. Unsuccessful? Worse, they became a running gag. Fools.

  5. Trump has great faith in P.T. Barnum type slogans, nicknames and advertising campaigns. They are what won him and his Russian handlers the Electoral College Vote, if not the Popular Vote (but they are working on that).

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