Saturday, July 26, 2008

AFTER A BAN: KEEP PUSHING

Once New York got its smoke-free ban in place in 2003, you'd think health advocates could rest a little, right? Hardly. That's when it was time to go into advertising overdrive, says Sandra Mullen, of the World Lung Association. The group helped push a nine-month advertising push, after the ban, about the dangers of second-hand smoke. That campaign, she says, helped New Yorkers stay focused.

Once the majority of the city was on board, Mullen says, the group moved toward advertising targeted at smokers to help them break their own habits. Questions focused on how to encourage health leaders and restaurant workers to support bans, even though they didn't want to offend smokers. One suggestion: Focus on advertising healthy, smoke-free environments as a selling point.

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