SBS asks the Australian public ‘should marijuana be legalised?’ in new campaign via Naked Comms
SBS and Naked Communications have today opened up the public debate on whether marijuana should be legalised launching a marketing campaign for the Insight episode Marijuana – is medicinal marijuana doing good or harm?
Insight, Australia’s leading forum for debate on current affairs and issues, will broadcast the episode on Tuesday 7th October at 8.30pm on SBS ONE discussing the legalisation of marijuana which is currently a hot topic on the political agenda and widely discussed in the media.
Starting today an interactive billboard will be live for six days (30th September – 7th October) in Sydney and Melbourne at Henry Dean Plaza (near Central Station) in Sydney before moving to Federation Square in Melbourne on 5th October.
The activation features synthetic marijuana plants growing on a mobile billboard prompting debate and discussion by asking the public to vote ‘yes’ or ‘no’ depending on whether they think marijuana should be legalised or not. People can vote via text, Twitter or via the SBS website at www.sbs.com.au/insight. As people vote the plants will ‘grow’ or ‘die’ depending on the results over the week. The final results will be revealed by Jenny Brockie ahead of the Insight broadcast.
Among the guests in the episode, host Jenny Brockie will speak to suppliers about the ‘science’ behind their ‘miracle drugs’, and the legal risks they face by providing it. Parents and patients speak about their success in using marijuana for a range of illnesses, and their desperation to have it legalised. Brockie also hears from medical experts who believe there’s no proven medical benefit to using marijuana, and that those using it are at risk of mental health issues.
As the prospect of legalisation and clinical trials looms in several states, Insight also asks whether legal marijuana will lead to an increase of recreational use – and just what will happen to the black market.
Says Amanda McGregor, SBS director of marketing: “The marijuana debate is a hot topic at the moment and SBS is continuing its role facilitating national conversation by reaching out beyond the program and asking Australians to join the debate. The marketing campaign and activation is a creative, cost effective way for SBS to invite audiences to engage with the program about this much debated subject.”
Says Carl Ratcliff, Naked Communications CEO: “The idea of a billboard that updates in real time via social media and SMS text is such a simple and elegant idea and able to provide live intelligence into an evergreen debate: should cannabis be legal or not?”
The activation will also be complemented by tactical placement of ‘coming soon’ posters on shop fronts in Sydney and Melbourne. The creative sees posters placed on vacant shop fronts advertising theoretical marijuana related businesses such as a Hydroponic Grow Shop or Medical Marijuana Clinic alongside a poster asking people to vote on whether they think marijuana should be legalised. Locations will be active from today, 30th September to 8th October.
Digital advertising will complement the campaign with rich media banners allowing voting and display of real time results across external media and SBS online.
The campaign has been produced by SBS and Naked Communications. The mobile billboard installation has been created by Habitat Media.
11 Comments
Dave’s not here, man.
Its about time the public knew that there Cannabis the the golden weed has therepeuyical beyound anyones imagination. For years the fight for its legalisation has been droning on. Its about time that people understand that pharmaceutical companies are about profit and don’t want natural things that are easily accesible and easily grown by the simple man to be got. For it will affect their businesses. Australians wake up and fight for your freedom to choose medicine that comes from the earth rather than from experimenting with chemical placebo concoctions that is synthetically derived by man
Er, ‘Truth be told’, I think all that dope has affected your spelling and grammar. Time to come back down to earth.
Does anyone else out there come up with their best ideas when they’re stoned outta their minds sitting at home? Always has worked for me and obviously I’m hell successful and stuff…
RAZOR, instead of looking for pathetic reasons, such as spelling mistakes and typos, to try and invalidate The Truth has to Be told’s argument why not put something of value forth to justify your opinion. Obviously you are against the legalisation of marijuana, for medicinal use or otherwise, for some reason, whether it is because you have had negative personal experiences with it or you simply have been swayed by the social stigma placed on cannabis use.
The benefits of legalising and regulating marijuana in Australia far outweigh any perceivable negatives, which includes, but is not limited to, reduced costs of policing, criminal justice and drug treatment. Meanwhile, licensing the drug could raise up to millions of dollars in tax revenues. Like other legal drugs, such as alcohol and tobacco, the tax can be injected into underfunded areas of the public sector like education or health. Though legalising cannabis may lead to more people taking the drug, the potency of the drug could easily be diminished by regulators – thus limiting the damage to public health. Not to mention, the thousands of Australian lives that medicinal marijuana would be improving, or the influx of tourism that it would create.
Hopefully, you can read this and take in the message that I am trying to convey, rather than looking for any spelling mistakes or grammatical errors.
Legal marijuana will help control youth use and quality of herb.Overseasv tourist industry benifit from available legal drug organic also make millions for government. To be able to stop control of big crime bosses whom make money from the herb to fund iileagal businesses like manufacturing speed ice evil drugs that destroy lives.To be able to grow will help poor whom use it for medical reasons .its a herb and wasting tax payers money for it to be policed is the crime..
Lighten up dudes! It was funny. A bit paranoid are we???
So, if the people on the ground can work it out (those in pain), why have the accredited ones (those controlling the structures) been sitting on their hands?
I can only think of 3 possibilities.
There is no money in it.
They can’t control it.
They have been asleep at the wheel.
I have a severely brain damaged 8 year old daughter, who the doctors would not believe that diet could stop seizures, (we lost custody, for the mother turning her back on mainstream medicine and doing it her way. They said she would die anyway) well, she didn’t, we saved her. Now the link between brain and gut is proven. They did not believe that the brain could repair it’s self, now brain plasticity is flavour of the month, ‘put her out on the wards and let nature take care it’s course’. They never believed that marijuana could stop seizures, they had better drugs. That has not been my experience (understatement here).
So the situation now, after 6 years and bitter custody battle, excess of 400 thou spent, and the truth not coming out in the court (do you think the judge would believe you if you said I saved our child from the all knowing and never wrong ones)
Professor can’t recommend trying marijuana and mum will not do anything that the doctors don’t endorse.(she had a bad experience with the physic ward)
Our daughter is again deteriorating.
Common sense could save our beautiful, sweet, sensitive little girl.
Now I understand what can make a father very very angry.
I have been doing some research in other countries and some mothers say that without the cannabis oil their child wouldn’t be here. We have a little girl 8yrs old continually having seizure from the time she was 3 months – if we could stop the seizures then we can focus on improving her quality of life and possibly become semi- if not totally independent – image the resources and costs associated with caring for all these clients in and outside the community sector – cause there is a huge number with disable siblings and children /adults not being assisted with their care – surely if the medical marijuana is legalised and is administered correctly – why are we preventing those autism/special needs people some quality of live and wellbeing. The community sector is short of resources in this area, from basic support workers, disable support workers, hospital, NDIS, Case Managers, social workers, physiologists etc to name a few, not to mention the amount of funds supported by the government to community agencies to assist in the support mechanism. Why not give it a go – it works in other countries and is helping thousands, Why not here and save the ones that need our help – Our little girl!
You cannot hold back real progress.It will be legal and it will happen sooner than you think.Maybe it will fund your filthy wars.
The only real danger of cannabis is that it makes people question their own governments actions,but that’s only dangerous for those in government.You cannot rule anybody with fear and aggression,only love and tolerance.blah blah blah
Wake up Mr abbott before you are voted all the way back out of the office.
yes…