january 3: the ad council for public service, 1957

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Look, January 8, 1957.

Since 1942, the Ad Council has presented Americans with public service announcements ranging from Smokey the Bear's suggestion that only you can prevent forest fires to McGruff the Crime Dog's vow to take a bite out of crime. 

This two-page spread highlights some of the Ad Council's late 1950s campaigns, which reflect a mixture of optimism, community building, and Cold War initiatives. It is refreshing to note that the Ad Council's website does apologize for some of its too-jingoistic campaigns during the Second World War directed against certain "foreigners." 

Perhaps a new campaign resurrecting the hand gesture depicted in question #3 could be modernized and used extensively for the upcoming U.S. midterms. 


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