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Volume 38 Issue 2
September 19, 2000

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PETA getting press they're after

MESA LEGEND
Submitted September 19, 2000

First it was “Got Beer?” Then it was “Got Prostate Cancer?” We should just call it “Got Press?”

In an effort to spread the message that milk is bad for you, it seems the animal loving folks at PeTA, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, have developed some interesting and creative ways to reach the public during the past year.

While PeTA is an organization known for publicity stunts, it appears they’ve hit on a marketing strategy that is accomplishing exactly what it set out to do — getting press.

They recently scored several stories on most of the mainstream news when they put up a billboard featuring New York City mayor Rudolph Giuliani with a milk mustache, asking “Got Prostate Cancer?”

Apparently, Giuliani, who was diagnosed with prostate cancer earlier this year, wasn’t pleased that his likeness was being used without his permission. PeTA defended using the image by saying Giuliani is a public figure and they didn’t need his permission. They later apologized, after receiving enough coverage of the stunt to get their message on the news racks. I watched the report on CNN, played every half-hour.

But it was not the stunt that caught my eye.

Sandwiched somewhere between Giuliani’s comment and the response from PeTA was a 15 second long explanation as to why PeTA put up the billboard.

PeTA’s message stating some medical studies have found a link to an increased chance of prostate cancer from drinking milk had found its way into millions of homes across the country.

It worked. The message was heard.

In March, they did the same thing. PeTA launched a campaign targeted at college students. They suggested that college students would be better off drinking beer than milk.

Trust me when I say, college students drink too much beer as it is.

After the campaign was launched, there was criticism from Mothers Against Drunk Driving and other organizations condemning PeTA for suggesting that drinking beer was better for you than drinking milk.

PeTA has some legitimate animal rights complaints that should be covered in the press. But, the truth is PeTA doesn’t care whether you get prostate cancer or get killed by a drunk driver. All they care about is America’s obsession with drinking milk. They are interested only in the way cows are being treated.

I agree animals could be treated better in America. But in the process of getting press, I think PeTA is being negligent to the public.

In the event America does stop drinking milk, do you think the cows will be left to wander the green pastures?

I think the campaign would go something like “Got Steak?”

Andrew Long is a staff member of the Mesa Legend and a journalism major at MCC.

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