Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1996. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
The Associated Press - Thursday, October 17, 1996.
Jon Marcus, Associated Press Writer
WCVB-TV, the ABC affiliate in Boston, this week became the fourth station in the country to agree to show the ads for LifeStyles condoms, though only after midnight. KPRC-TV in Houston, KING-TV in Seattle and KCPM-TV in Chico, Calif., all NBC affiliates, began running the commercials last month. All but Chico are in top 20 markets.
"This is not a decision people are making lightly," said Elizabeth Cheng, the Boston station's program manager. "But we're in a position to see the parade of statistics and the stories about the number of unwanted pregnancies that are out there, as well as the rising incidence of sexually transmitted diseases. What we're doing is responding to a problem in our community."
The sudden and consecutive approvals come after a decade of pressure from AIDS activists and others. Broadcast outlets had declined, citing opposition from viewers who say such ads encourage sex outside marriage.
"Why is today different? Because you have station managers at the local level who just believe it's the right thing to do," said Carol Carrozza, director of marketing at Ansell Consumer Products in Eatontown, N.J., which makes LifeStyles condoms.
"They can see that things aren't getting better," she said. "There are still more cases of HIV, sexually transmitted diseases and unwanted pregnancies."
The 60-second LifeStyles ad shows a computer animated skeleton obstinately repeating his excuses for never using condoms in his lifetime.
"It's a health issue now, and that's probably the recognition that many of these broadcasters are making," said Dan Trigoboff, senior editor of the industry magazine Broadcasting & Cable.
William Donohue, president of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, said broadcasters who defend condom advertising on the basis of their viewers' health have exercised selective judgment.
"It is impossible to separate the moral and health implications of condom use," Donohue said. "It is essentially giving a green light to young people. It's an enticement, however unwitting, to young people, to engage in premature sexual activity. The fact that they would advertise it on TV is irresponsible."
Forty-one stations continue to refuse the ad, according to Carrozza, who noted that most run public service announcements about condom use and AIDS furnished by the Centers for Disease Control.
All the major networks also have turned down the LifeStyles commercial, although it has been running for a year on MTV and Comedy Central on cable.
Carrozza predicts that more stations will follow the lead of the four that have accepted condom advertising.
"They're nervous alone," she said. "But there's strength in numbers. This is a first step."
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