Advocacy Messages

           As I was thinking about how to go about this blog assignment it occurred to me to think about some of the most iconic advocacy campaigns I can remember.  The following are the first two that came to my mind.  For me they have stayed with me since I first saw them when I was a child, and they are still used today.  I think the success of these two messages, and the associated advocacy campaigns, is they are short, catchy and touch your emotions.  The image of the vanishing young man or feeling the responsibility of keeping the forest and wildlife safe from harm are powerful messages.  They are messages that are difficult to ignore!

"The famous quote, "A mind is a terrible thing to waste," was a part of a campaign slogan used by the United Negro College Fund in 1972 and has remained unchanged for more than thirty years. This phrase has become part of the American vernacular and is used widely by lay persons and educators alike to drive home the point of the necessity of education" (Reference.com, 2014).

"The longest running campaign in Ad Council history, Smokey Bear and his famous warning, "Only You Can Prevent Forest Fires," was introduced to Americans in 1944. The Forest Fire Prevention campaign has helped reduce the number of acres lost annually from 22 million to 8.4 million (in 2000). Responding to the massive outbreak of wildfires in 2000, the campaign changed its focus to wildfires and Smokey's slogan to 'Only You Can Prevent Wildfires' " (Ad Council, 2013) 

Ad Council. (2013). Fire prevention. Retrieved from: http://www.adcouncil.org/Our-Work/The-Classics/Wildfire-Prevention

Reference.com.(2014). Famous quote a mind is a terrible thing to waste. Retrieved from: http://www.reference.com/motif/history/famous-quote-a-mind-is-a-terrible-thing-to-waste