When an ad campaign fails, the smart, responsible thing to do is retire it. Especially if you and I happen to be paying for it with our tax dollars.

But not according to the National Dairy Council. After all, though "Got Milk?" hasn't increased milk sales, it's like, you know, really popular. Stars line up to have their picture taken with a white mustache. Heck, there's even a coffee table book of the posters. If that doesn't spell "success," what does? 

Still, there's that sticky problem of sagging milk sales. But instead of trying to come up with a new campaign that might actually work, or quit throwing good money after bad and concede that milk will never topple cola or coffee, the National Dairy Council has a new tactic. They want school lunch programs to push—drum roll please--chocolate milk.

The tortured logic is that chocolate milk is healthier than soda pop. 

At the risk of quibbling, it might be more accurate to say, "less bad for you when consumed in small quantities."

Improving health by pushing chocolate milk in place of pop is like pushing low-tar cigarettes on kids who smoke. Can anyone say "false dichotomy"? 

Steve Cuno
 


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