TEENAGERS SHOCKED BY TV AD CAMPAIGN

With all eyes on the image of a teenager in a bodybag, a class of year 10
students at Hawthorn Secondary College sat in silence yesterday, thinking
about the ad's potential impact on young people.

"It reminds you that no matter how sweet and innocent you are, you can fall
into taking drugs," said one girl.

Others nodded. Another student said he had been particularly upset by the
scene that showed a teenage girl fighting with her mother.

"It's sad to see children not respecting their parents," he said, without a
hint of a smile. Others agreed.

The television images formed the linchpin of the Federal Government's
anti-drugs campaign, launched last weekend. They were accompanied by
booklets sent to sixmillion homes across the country.

Prime Minister John Howard hopes the campaign will encourage parents to
talk to their children about the consequences of drug abuse.

While the students were shocked by the images in the ads, they doubted
people their age would be greatly influenced by them.

They said younger children - especially those with little knowledge of
drugs - may be influenced by the campaign but that it would not affect
people in their mid-teens.

And certainly not those who were already drugs users, they said, because
most of them believed they could control their addiction.

The group said the issue of drug use was a sensitive subject for people in
their age group. Many of them said they found it impossible to discuss the
topic with their parents.

"They would give me a hiding just for speaking about it," said one boy.
"They think if you bring it up that means you want to do drugs."

They also said they would not raise the subject with their brothers or
sisters for fear they would "dob" to their parents that they were
interested in drugs.

Instead, they got their information from their friends and from classes at
school designed to educate them on the subject.

So how would the teenagers approach the issue, if they were their parents?

For a start, they said, telling them to stay away from drugs would only
incite their curiosity.

"Most kids want to rebel," said one girl. "If you say, `You must never take
drugs,' then they'll only think, `Well, why not?"'

The students said parents should discuss the subject with their children
calmly, listen to their opinions and answer any questions they may have.

That would be more constructive than ads with a momentary shock value, they
said, and certainly more effective than a booklet from the government
dropped into their letterboxes.

One student predicted: "People will just throw them out because they look
boring."