Tag Archives: advertising

Marijuana advertising lies, so where’s the outrage?

Billboards across the country advertise marijuana with false health claims that would never be allowed for tobacco or alcohol.  Big, bold and high (no pun intended), these signs help to sell the drug — while being seen by thousands of children.

Seen in Massachusetts

Why can’t state regulators stop these assaults on the public that attempt to portray weed as the road to a long life and better health?

Our answer: the cannabis industry which has legions of lobbyists in state governments — routinely prevails against sensible legislation. Only the states of Vermont and Montana ban billboard advertising. Most states struggle to regulate marijuana because the industry overpowers legislators with incredible promises.

Portland, Oregon

This sampling of billboards from around the country proves that the cannabis industry gets away with “murder” in legalization states.  It also proves that the ganjapreneurs, or so-called cannabis “doctors,” make fraudulent claims.  

Las Vegas

Quack Medicine and Phony Doctors

No ethical doctor would claim that cannabis is the road to a long and healthy life.  It’s about as medical as 100-proof alcohol.  Heavy, long-term cannabis users, like smokers and heavy drinkers, shorten their lives.   Even when some choose cannabis for palliative care, the drug doesn’t do anything comparable to real medicine.  Many with cancer try cannabis and reject it. Washington state

The “medical” marijuana industry’s false advertising began when they adopted a green cross, a pharmaceutical sign used in Europe.  The gimmick continued by using the term “dispensary, ” which means a clinic, or a room where medicine is dispensed.  Marijuana is numbness, not medicine.   Chicago in 2021

The pot industry understands addiction marketing.   In Chicago, 2021, Cresco Labs ran billboards repeating the word, EVERYDAY several times.   Of course, a public outcry followed.  

Marketing sex

After public outcry, an advertisement for cannabis-infused drinks near O’Hare Airport was replaced with something less sexual.

More recently, drivers into Chicago and O’ Hare Airport were greeted with a large billboard exclaiming that cannabis-infused drinks are better than SEX.  Big bold letters and hot red on a white background were used to capture attention.

A public outcry followed, with complaints written in the Chicago newspapers.  We’re happy to see that the sign was recently replaced,  but it still advertises for cannabis-infused drinks.

In Washington state, signs of pretty young women lure people into a pot shop called “Green Lady Marijuana.”

What about the Freebies?  

In Colorado, one billboard announced Free Dabs.   

Even worse, an activist group in Washington, DC,  gave out free marijuana with COVID shots.  The program was called “Joints for Jabs.”   Washington, DC, bans pot shops but allows gifting.

Most despicable are the advertising campaigns trying to get parents, and particularly women, to use weed.   Based on the number of child abuse deaths caused by pot-using parents and the knowledge that pregnant women must not use cannabis, these promoters must be stopped.

We may hate the cannabis industry, but give them credit for being some of the biggest con artists of our era — better than Big Tobacco and the opioid industry.

Have any complaints ever worked? 

Yes, a Colorado store with a mural of Cookie Monster from Sesame Street was forced to take it down after Sesame Street sued.  

Cookie Monster with pot cookies in Colorado, 2015.  A lawsuit forced the mural to be removed.

In California, a father complained the pot shops weren’t following the promise of Prop 64 not to advertise on interstate highways. He sued and won.

Editor’s Note:  Many of these signs are no longer visible, but the article is meant to alert the public of cannabis industry tactics.

Advertising drives higher youth use of marijuana in legalization states

In states where recreational marijuana is legal, adolescents ages 12 to 17 reported a 25% higher increase than in states without legalized cannabis.  The spike in marijuana usage that came with legalization is most dramatic among young people, and advertising probably drives the increase.

The unstated goals of the legalization movement – seen in the billboards, push polls, lobbying, political donations and empty promises – are making money and increasing usage. Continue reading Advertising drives higher youth use of marijuana in legalization states

Judge’s ruling to end many cannabis billboards in California

A judge’s ruling last week blew the lid off of the deceptive practices of the marijuana legalization program in California.  San Luis Obispo County Superior Court Judge Ginger E. Garrett made a ruling that bans certain billboard advertisements.  The decision affects the entire state.  Hopefully, children will see fewer large signs promoting marijuana. 

State officials allowed hundreds of billboards advertising marijuana along California highways, in contrast to voters’ expectations. A 2016 ballot initiative that legalized the sale of pot for recreational use was supposed to ban this type of advertising.  Proponents of the ballot gave voters the impression that children wouldn’t see such ads. The Bureau of Cannabis Control, a regulatory agency,  violated terms of Proposition 64.

We quote from the Los Angeles Times : “The lawsuit was filed by Matthew Farmer, a San Luis Obispo construction contractor who is father to a 15-year-old daughter and a 12-year-old son.

“One of his two attorneys, Stewart Jenkins, said Farmer voted for Proposition 64 in 2016 because he did not think adults should go to jail for smoking pot but was concerned when cannabis ads began appearing along the 101 Freeway traveled by his family. Continue reading Judge’s ruling to end many cannabis billboards in California

Washington Cracks Down on Billboards Advertising Pot

Marijuana Dispensaries have been open for three years in Washington and it’s taken legislators this long to crack down on billboards.  Last week that passed a bill aimed at making the the signs less appealing to children.

Legislators passed SB 3151 which will try to limit how marijuana companies can advertise on billboards  The sign for Green Lady Buds in Olympia uses sex appeal to portray a certain image (pictured above).   Another sign that some people found inappropriate to young audiences had a large cat saying, “I’m so high right meow.”

Rep. Joyce McDonald Introduced Bill

State lawmakers don’t think the billboards should appeal to children in any way.  The new signs should use words, not pictures.  The bill has gone to Gov. Jay Inslee for his signature.

State Rep. Joyce McDonald of Puyallup,  introduced the bill.  She said, “The people who have called me from my district are very concerned because every time they drive past, the billboards are in their face”   Concerned about impressionable children learning to read,  McDonald wanted to ban all the marijuana advertising on the billboards.  She doesn’t understand why the state prohibits such advertisements for cigarettes, but allows them for weed. Under a 1998 settlement agreement reached with 46 states, including Washington, tobacco companies agreed to stop using billboards to advertise their products.