Youth Say Anti-Vaping Ads, Most Initiatives Miss the Mark

July 22, 2019 As a former ad agency creative director, when I saw a bunch of Muppets trash-talking the Juul brand for an e-cigs PSA pitch I quickly went into “what the bleep” mode wondering how the branding could be so off the mark. I’m a huge fan of the former Truth Initiative campaign that used a ‘lift and reveal’ tonality of covert, corrupt tactics spotlighting the … [Read more...]

Will SF Ban on Juul E-Cigs Stop Youth Vaping? Ask Them.

July 20, 2019 Health advocate colleagues are confused as to why I’m not wildly applauding the SF ban on e-cigs, given my staunch stance against Juul and other flavored "vaping gone viral" profiteers that have targeted and hooked youth via high doses of nicotine...especially after co-viewing this week's CNBC special Vaporized with youth. To explain… Behavioral psychologists in … [Read more...]

Fighting Fire with Fire: How Would YOU Counter-Market Vaping?

June 19, 2019 As an ad industry creative director I’ve spent years using applied science to flip messages in healthier directions by tapping into the same tactics that marketers use to hook their audiences early and often. (Here’s how I use marketing tactics to sell 'reluctant readers' on reading for fun, or getting kids to 'eat green' by using Shrek against junk food drek … [Read more...]

Juul’s Bait and Switch Demographics Blitz TV With Goodwashing

May 27, 2019 Hey young people, gather round…You might want to tell your parents they’re being played by the current TV ad blitz of goodwashing by vaping giant Juul claiming to be all about smoking cessation when YOU were the ‘hard target’ from the very start. When I first heard about Juul years ago, I'd hoped their intent and target market was very similar to the exact campaign … [Read more...]

Jean Kilbourne Enters 2015 Women’s Hall of Fame (Pt 1)

Oct. 2, 2015 Long before self-proclaimed experts flooded social media with newly minted personas and punditry, women like filmmaker Jean Kilbourne spent decades of devotion upending toxic media narratives. In an era of sound bite journalism and ‘look at me’ talking heads, culture critics like Jean Kilbourne are "the real deal" with a lifetime spent shining glaring high beams … [Read more...]