The Media Campaign Design

ONDCP's Media Campaign, proposed by the President and approved by Congress, was developed in response to reported increases in drug use among America's youth. The Media Campaign's goals are (1) to educate and enable America's youth to reject illegal drugs; (2) to prevent youth from initiating the use of drugs, especially marijuana and inhalants; and (3) to convince occasional users to stop using these and other illegal drugs.

The Media Campaign is being implemented in three phases:

• Phase I was the Conceptual Development or "learning lab" phase, in which paid anti-drug advertising was targeted at 12 metropolitan areas over a 4-month period (mid-January through mid-May 1998). An additional 12 sites, comparable to the target sites in ethnic and geographic audiences and drug use trends, were selected for purposes of comparison. This phase was designed to provide feedback about Media Campaign design and management to help shape Phases II and III.
• Phase II is the Initial Nationwide Advertising or "validation" phase, which began in July 1998 and will run through the end of the year. As in Phase I, paid advertising is being disseminated through radio and TV slots, print media, and billboards. Advertisements designed specifically for the Media Campaign will begin, and partnerships with the private sector, community coalitions and other organizations, and State and local governments will be increased.
• Phase III is the Integrated Communications Program phase, during which anti-drug messages will reach national target audiences at effective exposure rates through a combination of media outlets, and non-advertising components (e.g., entertainment industry, Internet and new media, corporate outreach, news media outreach, and professional sports) will be incorporated.

The Media Campaign is targeted at five audiences: elementary, middle, and high school children, parents, and other influential adults. Based on documented research, the Campaign is expected to change drug-use attitudes among young people within 2 to 3 years. Each phase of the Media Campaign will be evaluated to measure attainment of that goal.

In January 1998 ONDCP began implementing Phase I of the National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign, planned as a 20-week pilot-test targeted in 12 media markets. ONDCP purchased prime-time slots on television and radio as well as advertising space on billboards and in the print media for a series of anti-drug use advertisements. In addition to paid ads, ONDCP negotiated a pro bono match of donated air and print space for additional exposures. The specific ads that were run in the 12 target sites were planned according to the types of drugs prevalent in each community as well as the ethnic populations of each community. A media-buying contractor worked with ONDCP to purchase air time for running the paid advertisements.

The Media Campaign is complicated because it relied on existing ads, provided by the Partnership for a Drug-Free America (PDFA), which were presented in target sites through paid media outlets.