Tailoring but not targeting: a critical analysis of “the Meth Project” aimed at Hispanic youth

This paper examines the Meth Project, a social marketing campaign that enlists violence and fear to persuade Anglo and Hispanic youth in the USA to avoid methamphetamines. Violent and graphic media spots, although perhaps initially effective for facilitating message acceptance, may be counterproductive for long-term campaign objectives. We draw on Witte's Extended Parallel Process Model to conceptualize how fear, risk, and behavior drive health-related behaviors. Merely translating the Anglo spots into Spanish is an insufficient strategy to reach Hispanic youth because it targets rather than tailors its message. Significant findings of content analyses show that public service announcements in Spanish, unexpectedly, underscore recovering users' concern for violating norms with schools, employers, and law enforcement (secondary groups), whereas the Anglo spots show users more upset for disappointing family, friends, and loved ones (primary groups). Culturally appropriate Latino spots should tailor their messages to the values of familism, collectivism, simpatia, personalismo, and respeto, which have implications for reaching Hispanic audiences in other social marketing contexts. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.