TV SHOW PROMO GOES TO POT

Most TV networks are high on their programming.

To promote its Emmy-nominated comedy about suburban pot smokers,
"Weeds," Showtime will roll into Boston next week with a "Munchie
Mobile," handing out free brownies, shirts, hats and first-season
DVDs from various landmarks. The second season premieres at 10 p.m.
Monday. An ad for "Weeds" in the current issue of Rolling Stone
magazine features a scent strip meant to evoke an aroma of marijuana.

"Certainly this is to promote a show and help us break through the
clutter, fully appreciating what the show is about," said Showtime
spokesman Stuart Zakim.

But as Tom Riley, public affairs director for the U.S. Office of
National Drug Control Policy, told TVWeek.com this week, "There are
more teens in treatment for marijuana than for alcohol dependence -
Is that funny?"

A converted ice-cream truck, the Munchie Mobile arrives here
Wednesday, parked outside Faneuil Hall in the morning, North Station
in the afternoon. On Thursday, it's Copley Square and South Station;
Friday, Downtown Crossing and Harvard Square. Next Saturday, it'll be
on Newbury Street and outside Fenway Park.

Coincidentally, Wednesday kicks off an eight-week speaking program in
Dorchester designed to warn teens about drug addiction. Dr. P.S.
Kishore, who founded the National Library of Addictions in Brookline,
said his "Clean Summer Series" has recovering addicts tell their
stories to prevent teens from making the same mistakes.

According to a 2004 national survey, four of every 10 Americans have
smoked pot at least once. That can lead to other illict drug use,
Kishore said. "Opiates, cocaine, heroin. It all starts with
marijuana," he said. "It's a gateway that opens up to all of the others."