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Gov't Blew $1 Billion on Anti-Drug Ads
The Federal government’s anti-drug media campaign has cost taxpayers more than $1 billion — but has so far not succeeded in reducing teen drug use, according to a probe by the Government Accountability Office. The GAO report recommends that Congress limit funding until the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) "provides credible evidence of a media campaign approach that effectively prevents and curtails youth drug use." Congress is set to take up the anti-drug media campaign budget when it returns from its recess. The campaign's current budget is $99 million. ONDCP has asked for $120 million next year, and the Senate agrees with that amount, but the House has recommended just $100,000. The government has spent the money since 1998 on scores of television, print and radio ads designed to discourage drug use among young people.
The GAO report examined the Westat survey, named after the Rockville, Md., research firm that was awarded a contract to evaluate the media campaign, according to the industry publication Adweek.
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The $42 million survey concluded that the anti-drug campaign raises awareness among parents but has done little to change teen drug use. Westat is not without its critics, however. It raised eyebrows when it once reported that the campaign actually contributed to an increase in marijuana use among teenage girls. When the media campaign changed its target audience to 11- to 15-year-olds, Westat continued to measure the previous demographic of 9- to 11-year-olds and was unable to measure the new target audience. In a response to the GAO report, drug czar John Walters questioned the validity of the Westat survey, saying it seeks to directly prove that advertising caused teens to stop using drugs. Walters wrote: "Establishing a causal relationship between exposure and outcomes is something major marketers rarely attempt because it is virtually impossible to do." The GAO probe followed the convictions of two top agency officials for overbilling the government on the campaign, and left ONDCP in a no-win situation, according to Adweek: "As one observer put it at the time the probe was launched, ‘If the GAO finds that Westat is a piece of crap, then ONDCP has wasted $42 million. If the report says Westat has somehow found the holy grail of advertising cause and effect, then the campaign is not working by that measure.’”
The GAO report was prompted by a request from Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., to examine all contracts that were part of the media campaign, including ads, public relations and evaluation.
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