The so-called morning-after pill is advertising on MTV.com.
The company that makes the emergency contraceptive known as Plan B is running a banner ad for the pill on the popular MTV website, where media-measurement firm Quantcast found that nearly a third of users are younger than 18.
The ad directs users to the Plan B website, go2planb.com. Its tagline is "Because the unexpected happens."
The ad placement worries some parents, such as Denise O'Donoghue and her husband, Patrick, who recently had "the talk" with their 14-year old daughter. "We asked her what she knew, and we were shocked at how much misinformation and misconception among kids is really out there about sexual education," Ms. O'Donoghue told Advertising Age. "For MTV to run this ad is irresponsible. There are some kids -- girls and boys -- who aren't quite ready to understand all this. Between that and the way the advertising for Plan B makes it sound like you can make a mistake and have a do-over, it's irresponsible."
Dr. Vanessa Cullins, VP-medical affairs for Planned Parenthood Federation of America, disagreed. "By the time teenagers are browsing the MTV website, they are already full of curiosity about their sexual health," she told Advertising Age. "Countless studies have shown that the more often that parents and educators talk with adolescents and provide them with age-appropriate sexual-health information, the more likely they are to make responsible decisions. In addition, studies have shown that providing teenagers with information about birth-control options and information to prevent unintended pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections does not lead to earlier onset of sexual activity and intimacy; rather, it provides teenagers with the tools to make healthy decisions."
Do you think MTV.com should run these ads for the morning-after pill?
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