Getty Image / RJ Sangosti / Contributor
A new anti-meth ad campaign was launched by the state of South Dakota with the slogan “Meth. We’re On It.” But many Twitter users noted that the slogan sounded as if it was promoting the lethal drug and dragged South Dakota over the slogan.
Like many places in the United States, South Dakota has faced a methamphetamine epidemic. South Dakota issued a press release detailing the issues it is having with attempting to reduce meth abuse in the state. The statement said that there have been 2,242 meth-related arrests in South Dakota between January and August of this year. During the same time period, there have been over 57,000 grams or about 125 pounds of meth seized, and three meth labs shut down.
South Dakota’s Department of Social Services paid nearly $450,000 for the Broadhead Co. ad agency from Minneapolis to develop an anti-meth campaign to persuade people to not do meth. The statewide campaign will include a TV commercial, billboards, posters, and a website.
However, the half-a-million-dollar ad campaign seemed to promote methamphetamine use.
South Dakota has launched a campaign to combat meth.
With this new logo.https://t.co/u5l7HF7mK9 pic.twitter.com/OvRjkCqlHl
— Mike Baker (@ByMikeBaker) November 18, 2019
The slogan for the campaign shows several South Dakotans with the caption: “Meth. We’re On It” and “Meth. I’m On It.”
South Dakota launches new anti-meth PR campaign (paying the ad agency 450k to develop it).
“Eighty-three percent of South Dakota's 2019 court admissions for controlled substances are related to meth.”https://t.co/z0MI2QmRDd pic.twitter.com/s3C2zlZvkZ— Alex Thompson (@AlexThomp) November 18, 2019
The ad campaign seemed so preposterous that people wanted proof that the “Meth. We’re On It.” was a legitimate state campaign. South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem unveiled the poorly worded ad campaign in a Facebook video.
Governor Kristi Noem said she’s “on meth.”
"The tagline is: I'm on meth," says the governor of South Dakota, ON VIDEO.
Well, the campaign is sure to achieve the state's goal of getting people talking about an important issue. pic.twitter.com/eIdYqgLqDn
— Mike Baker (@ByMikeBaker) November 18, 2019
South Dakota’s Social Services Secretary Laurie Gill called the anti-meth marketing as “inclusive and empowering.”
South Dakota Social Services Secretary Laurie Gill calls the state's new "Meth. We're On It" campaign "inclusive and empowering." (That's one way to put it.) https://t.co/NDBiz6AoNQ
— Andy Shain (@AndyShain) November 18, 2019
Twitter ridiculed the “Meth. “We’re On It.” campaign.
Phrasing.https://t.co/VIgjjJxVA5
— Ben Collins (@oneunderscore__) November 18, 2019
Psilocybin. I'm on Saturn's rings playing badminton with purple-colored pandas who speak Portuguese. https://t.co/ZnMzeJkvdO
— Paul Sacca (@Paul_Sacca) November 19, 2019
https://twitter.com/speedius/status/1196535673890557953
BREAKING: They totally uploaded the wrong version, guys. pic.twitter.com/Y1KStMZvjx
— Reno Gruber (@RenoGruber) November 18, 2019
https://twitter.com/jeuler/status/1196534839094067200
Some had the counterpoint that the ad campaign did just what they intended to do — bring awareness to meth abuse in South Dakota.
https://twitter.com/BrianMFloyd/status/1196541718184677377
I hope you've all figured out that South Dakota's ad agency knows exactly what it's doing and you're giving them the attention they wanted? (If their slogan had been of the "Don't do meth; it's bad for you" ilk literally no one would be aware of SD's anti-meth campaign today.)
— David Jarman (@DavidLJarman) November 18, 2019
The South Dakota meth ad campaign is doing exactly what it supposed to do
— Chris (@chrstphr_woody) November 18, 2019
[Twitchy]