Oregon: County to Halve the Number of Condom-Use TV Spots

Southern Oregon TV stations will continue airing only one of two controversial ads aimed at encouraging teenagers to use condoms. The other ad, which features two teens in the throes of passion, will not resume, said Jackson County Health and Human Services Director Hank Collins.

Jackson said the move was not a response to community criticism of the two 30-second spots, which have aired for six weeks on commercial and cable stations. When he spoke to a handful of critics, Collins said he found out they had not seen the ads. "There was clearly an organized movement out there where people were told to call this number and complain," he said.

The ad campaign will end after November, pending the launch of a similar, statewide media effort next year by Planned Parenthood, and an assessment of the campaign's effectiveness. Co-sponsored by the Jackson County Health Department and the local Planned Parenthood affiliate, the ads were purchased with about $10,000 in state family planning funds. About $2,000 of the money remains, Collins said, and will be used to run the ad several more times, though less frequently than before.

Kellie Shoemaker, Planned Parenthood's community outreach coordinator, said response has been overwhelmingly positive. "We haven't received anything negative. People say they like the parent piece a lot." The ad that continues to run urges teens to "Protect yourself. Love, Mom and Dad."

The ads are based on the theme, "Love, Mom and Dad," replacing the "O's" in the message with unwrapped condoms. The second ad featured a teen couple who paused in their activities to find a condom left by the girl's parents.

In January, Oregon Planned Parenthood will hold a strategy session to discuss its "Rights, Respect and Responsibility" campaign.

Back to other news for November 7, 2003