Today, like many others I assume, I watched the Today Show segment about the anti-smoking ad that was made in Australia with a little boy (“child actor” as the producers call him) who thinks his mother left him in a busy train station and he began to cry REAL tears and the look of terror on his face tied my stomach in knots. One side of the spectrum says that anything that saves lives is OK, even if it means a 3 or maybe 4 year old is scared for about 10 or 15 seconds. The other side of the spectrum is appalled by this commercial because in their opinion, the ends does not justify the means.
Now I am the BIGGEST anti-smoking person you will find. I think that smoking is gross, a waste of money, it grinds my you know what when I see someone smoking in their car with their children inside. Sure sometimes they roll the window down, a crack, but the second hand smoke that those children are being exposed to his still very much there.
I have no problem with most anti-smoking ads. Sure it’s pretty gross to see what smoking does to a persons teeth, lungs, etc. And sure that may scare a kid who sees that on a commercial, BUT that is the time that you can talk to your kids about what smoking does, how bad it is for you, and maybe they won’t be one of the young teens taking up smoking.
However, this commercial with the little boy who is too little, in my opinion, to understand that his mommy is not really gone. In his eyes (which I think we all saw was apparent), his mother was gone. He was alone in a busy train station. Sure parents walk around the corner everyday and watch their wandering child cry for a second when he can’t find his mom, but that, again in my opinion, is one of those teachable moments for kids who wander away to learn and understand how scary it is when they wander away. This anti-smoking commercial is not the same thing.
Below I have added the video. Watch…it’s about 5 minutes long, but at the end Matt Lauer interviews an advertising executive who gives their side of videos like that (this particular advertising executive is NOT the one who produced the video). Anyway, watch it and leave a comment with your opinion on whether or not the ends justifies the means in this situation.
In certain types of commercials, the ends never justifies the means.
I may be an anti-smoker (having lost a couple of relatives to it), but that doesn’t mean I would approve of a commerical that gives the impression of child abandonment.
Wow, they are digging deep, that commercial probably did the exact opposite of what it was meant to do. Smokers get the point and with the rising cigg. prices a lot of people are quiting. Who wants to pay $7 per pack of cigg. That’s what they should focus on, the amount of money smokers are wasting a month or a year.
I saw this report as well…think is is AWFUL!!! They did leave the boy alone and those are real tears…child abuse in my eyes. I am anti smoking as well that that ad was way over the top!
i don’t know if it was my computer,but i didn’t have sound on the video.
I agree the video was harsh,but worth it …i use to smoke many.many years ago,but it is a horrible habit,and needs to show young people it’s not a good thing.
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