The Above the Influence campaign was created in 2005 by the Office of National Drug Control Policy to target youth ages 12-17 and focus on ages 14-16 to combat drug abuse through social and cultural influence. The campaign uses nationwide commercials and local community involvement to raise awareness of drug abuse effects among middle and high school students. Studies show youth exposed to the campaign's advertising are less likely to use drugs than those not exposed. The campaign effectively reaches a majority of teens and provides anti-drug messages through its website, commercials, and social media presence on Facebook.

1. Molly Alexander
Rachel Drummond
Ashley Richardson

2. How it Began
In 2005, the Office of National Drug Control
Policy’s National Youth Anti-Drug media
campaign created Above the Influence. The
campaign was created to target ages 12-17, but
focus on ages 14-16 in an effort to combat the
influence of drug abuse in both social and
cultural aspects.

3. How it Works
• The campaign functions as propaganda using nationwide
commercials and local/community involvement to make
teens aware of the effects of drug abuse.
• The commercials are meant to function as prevention
messages for the middle school and high school age
group. The campaign views the transition from middle to
high school as critical, which is why they focus on ages
14-16 in an effort to prevent drug abuse from ever
starting.
• The community and local involvement is made possible
because the Campaign partners with youth-serving
organizations across the nation, offering technical
assistance and training in the form of conferences,
workshops, and webinars.

4. Statistics
• Youth who are aware of the Above the Influence
advertising are consistently more likely to have
stronger anti-drug beliefs compared to those
unaware of the Campaign’s advertising.
• 75 percent of teens (both genders and all
ethnicities) say that Above the Influence speaks
to someone like them
• 85 percent of teens are aware of ATI advertising

5. How Do They Get Their Message
Across?
The Anti-Drug website makes downloadable resources
available to the public, including:
•A parents handbook
•Toolkits to share information with your community
• Information on prescription drug abuse, drunk driving and
technology
•To access available resources visit
www.theantidrug.com/resources
•Information is also available on AbovetheInfluence.com,
including commercial advertisements which are most
effective in reaching the public
•http://
www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7aHf-GfvWQ&feature=player_embe

6. Facebook
www.facebook.com/abovetheinfluence

7. Official Website

8. Campaign Effectiveness
More recent independent studies:
•Dr. Michael Slater et al (2011), in a study published online by the peer-
reviewed journal Prevention Science, found evidence for the effectiveness of
the Above the Influence Campaign. This independent scientific analysis,
funded through a grant by the National Institutes on Drug Abuse, concluded
that "exposure to the ONDCP (ATI) campaign predicted reduced marijuana
use." The analysis, showed that those youth who reported exposure to the
ATI campaign were less likely to begin use of marijuana compared to those
not exposed to the ATI campaign – a finding consistent with the Campaign's
own year-round Youth Ad Tracking Survey results.
•Dr. Christopher Carpenter and Dr. Cornelia Pechmann (2011), in a study
published in the American Journal of Public Health (AJPH ), linked greater
exposure to ONDCP's Above the Influence Campaign to reduced drug use
among young females. Specifically, the study found girls to be especially
receptive to Above the Influence's anti-drug messages about achievement
and living life above negative influences.

9. Campaign Effectiveness con’t

10. Critique
Positive:
• The campaign reaches a large audience, a majority of teens know what the
campaign is and the message it is trying to get across.
• Commercials are memorable to the audience, also the logo is recognizable
to anyone aware of the campaign.
• They use peers in advertisements rather than celebrities which makes the
campaign relatable.
Negative:
• While they are active on Facebook they do not have a Twitter page, the
only presence they do have on Twitter is through hashtags and what the
Office of National Drug Control posts about them on its Twitter page.
• While it is positive that the Above the Influence organization provides
resources to help make yourself and people around you aware of the
dangers of drug-abuse, the organization does not appear to do community
outreach in any other form than advertisements.