Some new new Smokey Bear fire prevention ads have been produced in the last couple of months. Here is one that was uploaded to You Tube yesterday by the Ad Council, which produces the ads.
(VIDEOS NO LONGER AVAILABLE)
The one below was put on You Tube an hour ago by the Ad Council. It is about a guy outside a diner who throws his cigarette onto the ground and is called out by someone in the diner who, like the previous ad, morphs into Smokey.
The next one was released in 2007. It features Bambi and other cutesy forest creatures. Remember it was Bambi being scared by forest fires decades ago that made the public fear ALL wildland fires and made it very difficult to conduct prescribed fires.
Has anyone else noticed that Smokey no longer calls them “forest fires”? He has switched to “wildfires”. When did that happen? In 2007 or before?
In 2008 Wildfire Today told you about a new Smokey ad featuring ATV riders that produced enough criticism that it was pulled and cancelled. An ATV organization complained that it…
“…incorrectly conveyed to the ATV rider that the best way for them to prevent wildfires was to stay at home. Instead, the ad should have encouraged the use of Forest Service-approved spark arresters and limiting travel to approved routes and areas.”
