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National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign
Phase 1 (Report No. 1)
Conclusions
As this report is released, there are likely to be other important effects of the Media Campaign taking place in local communities. These will be documented in the final report. This report highlights the severity of the drug problem in the target and comparison communities and makes a strong case for affording the Media Campaign an opportunity to demonstrate how youth awareness, attitudes, and, with time, behavior, can be influenced positively with sufficient exposure to prosocial, anti-drug messages.
Early evidence indicates that communities, parents, and youth are gravely concerned about drugs in their midst and are open to solutions to the drug problem. They believe that anti-drug messages in the media have the potential to be effective given the right content, message, and approach. A wealth of rich, descriptive information is contained in this early report of the pilot evaluation. This information can help to inform subsequent activities and phases of the Media Campaign.
It is important to note that the information presented in this report is preliminary. The complete story of what happened after exposure to the full implementation of the Phase I Media Campaign will be reported in the Phase I final report. It is clear, however, that 3 months into the implementation, the Media Campaign has made its presence known. Youth, parents, and community representatives across the 12 target sites are very aware of the new television ads being aired, the frequency with which they are shown, and the new time slots in which they are seen. There also is some level of awareness, primarily among older youth, of radio ads and billboard ads that are part of the Phase I Media Campaign.
Recall and understanding of the messages are accurate, particularly among parents and older youth. Community representatives generally were supportive of the Media Campaign effort and described activities in their own community to build on the momentum of the Media Campaign. Parents are eager to have more ads focused on helping them educate their own children about the dangers of drug use. Time will tell the story of the Media Campaign's impact on changing attitudes and behavior toward drug use. The first step, heightening youth and parent awareness of the anti-drug message, has been accomplished.
