Pubdate: Sun, 08 Jan 2006
Source: Johnson City Press (TN)
Copyright: 2006 Johnson City Press
Contact:  http://www.johnsoncitypress.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1983
Author: Kristen Swing, Press Staff Writer
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)

'METH DESTROYS' TO INCLUDE TV SPOTS

Officials Stepping Up Anti-Drug Campaign This Year.

The statewide "Meth Destroys" campaign, which kicked off in early
November and is being funded by a grant from Gov. Phil Bredesen's
office, now is kicking it up another notch in 2006.

In its first two months, the campaign already helped to increase
attention to the meth problem in Tennessee through presentations to
student groups and other public outreach efforts. As a new part of the
campaign, the Tennessee District Attorney General Conference is
preparing to roll out television public service announcements that
present recovering methamphetamine addicts.

The TV spots, due out sometime in January, feature powerful messages
delivered by Tennesseans who are recovering from meth addiction. They
speak candidly about the drug's effect on them as well as on their
loved ones and about how the devastating impact continues to haunt
them on a day-to-day basis.

"Unless you've experienced it by seeing someone that it has affected,
it sounds like just words. This just makes it all very, very real,"
said District Attorney General Joe Crumley. "These meth addicts have
lived that life, they know what it does to you. I think it will be
more effective. It's not just a scare tactic."

The recovering addicts featured in the announcements are from Memphis,
Nashville, Cookeville and Cleveland.

In addition to the television spots, the "Meth Destroys" campaign also
is introducing drivers on Tennessee highways to the effects of meth by
putting up billboards aimed at encouraging people to visit the state's
anti-meth Web site, www.MethFreeTN.org.

"I think the main thing is educating people about the dangers of
meth," Crumley said. "The site will offer a lot more information than
trying to put all the information up on the actual billboard."

The Web site, which recently was redesigned and updated, has been
visited more than 575,000 times since its launch in November.

The statewide fight against meth intensified in 2005 as Bredesen and
the state's district attorneys teamed up with law enforcement agencies
and campaign partners to raise awareness about the drug's dangers as
well as to enforce new state laws that make it harder to obtain the
main ingredients needed to produce meth.

The Meth-Free Tennessee Act, signed into law in March 2005, requires
pharmacies to remove certain cold and sinus medicines that contain
pseudophedrine, a common meth ingredient, from store shelves and put
them behind the counters, making access to the drug more prohibited.

The law has had a significant impact in reducing the number of meth
labs in the state. Lab seizures decreased nearly 40 percent in May and
nearly 60 percent in June, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency.

"Despite this decrease, meth continues to be a growing problem in our
state," Bredesen said in a recent news release. "We hope that our
aggressive campaign to educate residents about the dangers of the drug
and new laws increasing meth-related penalties will discourage meth
use and send a strong signal to producers and dealers that we're
serious about coming after them."

In addition to the television spots and billboards, the "Meth
Destroys" campaign includes ongoing distribution of a youth brochure,
posters, bumper stickers and other materials. The campaign soon also
will include a standards-based activity guide for middle and high
school teachers, an adult education booklet and special informational
fliers. 
- ---
MAP posted-by: Richard Lake