A Tip From A Nonsmoker About Former Smokers

Being a student at Marquette University, I have seen a lot of interesting things in downtown Milwaukee.  One of the most interesting things I see on a day to day basis is the different advertisement promotions posted on the Milwaukee County Transit Systems bus stops because there are many bus stops on campus.  Below are two photos featured in their newest display of advertisements.

In the first photo, all I noticed was the whole in the mans neck and was instantly disturbed.  I then went to read the advertisement and learned that it was the result of smoking.  In the second one, I noticed the large scar first as well, and then read about having her entire lung removed from her body.  

Then recently I saw this commercial.

After seeing the photos around campus and seeing this commercial, I did some research on the overall project.  The Center of Disease Control (CDC) has been promoting these ads to help people who are smoking to stop and to prevent nonsmokers from ever starting.  Putting these photos on a college campus was a very intelligent idea.  Many people believe that smoking helps stress, which is why many college students begin to smoke.  I see many students and professors who smoke on campus, so providing these photos is a great way to show people what could happen to them if they continue to smoke. 

Both of these photos were something I walked past everyday.  I have never smoked and having to see these results everyday made it clear in my mind that I never will.  A lot of people have lost loved ones to smoking, myself included, so I'm sure seeing these photos hits home as well.  The video itself was the most shocking and heartbreaking because hearing her hoarse voice and seeing her start her day by putting herself together was truly frightening.  

If these advertisements don't shy people away from smoking, I'm not sure what will. 

In Her Day...

I recently saw this commercial while I was watching TV with my family and instantly thought how clever it was. It proves in many ways how times have changed in many aspects of everyone's lives.

The first thing that is clear that has changed in both of their views is Oatmeal itself.  The older women remembers it as being just "oats and meal", when now it is known to have many flavors and toppings added to it.  I see the addition of fruit, toppings, and other flavors as a type of marketing to make it more appealing for people to eat because many people assume Oatmeal has a very bland taste.  This is a way to target more people than just the older generation that grew up eating the original Oatmeal.

A second idea I noticed that shows the changing of generations is the fact that the older woman has a Smartphone and she utilizes it to take a picture of the Oatmeal to blog about it.  It shows how the older generation is embracing the new forms of technology and are actually interested about it.  I know that my Grandparents know almost nothing about cell phones, computers, and the "world wide web", so it is interesting to see that some generations are learning to embrace the technology of our world today and trying to adapt to it, when others are still struggling to understand what technology really is.

I thought it was a unique addition to this commercial by showing the relationship between a young adult and an older adult and the underlying message of how each of them have adapted to different lifestyles.  It is fascinating to see the young adult eating a healthy meal of oatmeal and the older woman busy on her dazzling purple cell phone busy blogging about it, showing how the roles of people today have almost switched.

McDonald's created a clever commercial that focused on attracting the attention of multiple generations to come in and have a healthy breakfast through their transition of healthier choices, which is what caught my eye in the first place.