I like the spots, but tweeted back that I wondered if this campaign would be effective with the target audience – presumably pre-teens, teenagers and young adults. Did I like them because I know who James Lipton is and can appreciate the context?
Then a day or two later I came across MTV’s A Thin Line campaign. These videos are very, very different than the LG ones. I’m sharing one below, but fair warning that some folks might find these offensive and, if you plan on showing these in your school, you might want to clear it with whomever you typically clear controversial things with. Now, I think this is appropriate at least for high school students (otherwise I wouldn’t share it on this blog), but others might disagree.
My first thought was that the MTV videos would be much more effective at stimulating a class discussion, and also grab the target audience’s attention even if seen “in the wild.” But then I wondered if any public service campaign on this topic (or any topic, for that matter) can really make a difference. I certainly think that most high school students, if you sat down and talked to them about these issues, could tell you the perils of sexting or cyberbullying, yet obviously some of them are engaging in these activities anyway. If that’s the case, then can/will a PSA convince them otherwise?
What are your thoughts? Would you use these in a high school classroom? Do you think these videos can be effective – either on their own, or paired with classroom discussion? And, no matter your opinion on those questions, are you addressing this topic in some way in your school?
