Gainesville residents react to graphic anti-smoking ads

When anti-smoking TV ads from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention appear while Gabby Gostigian is baby-sitting, she changes the channel.

Gostigian, a 19-year-old UF zoology freshman, said the ads can sometimes be a bit too graphic for children.

The CDC recently released new ads, funded by the Affordable Care Act’s Prevention and Public Health Fund, that focus on the stories of people affected by smoking. The ads are expected to run for at least 12 weeks and will be on the TV, radio and billboards, according to the CDC.

The new ads feature Terrie, a former smoker who uses an artificial voice box. She tells current smokers to record their voices so their loved ones can know what they sounded like before smoking impacts their voice. Before, the ads showed Terrie preparing herself for the day by putting in her dentures, covering the hole in her throat with a scarf and wearing a wig.

Although the ads are a continuation of the CDC's prior anti-smoking campaign, local residents are questioning the ads' presentation of smoking's impact on people to send a message.

Andrew Romero, Alachua County tobacco prevention specialist, said ads like Terrie's are effective but can sometimes generate controversy.

"These ads also seem to be incredibly effective in encouraging and moving smokers closer to wanting to quit," he said.

Maureen Miller, director of GatorWell Health Promotion Services, said the ads might not work well with the younger population because they believe it'll never happen to them.

"It doesn't really resonate in terms of changing their behaviors, especially when we're talking about tobacco," she said.

Simon Persico, a 22-year-old UF business junior, started smoking when he was 17 years old. He said most smokers don't see themselves quitting until they're older, adding that the ads are scary because they reveal the worst-case scenarios of smoking.

"The ads are obviously a good idea," he said, "but I think they're a little sensational."

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Beatrice Dupuy, Alligator Contributing Writer