Maybe it's for the same people who hire a dermatologist they see an ad for in the train?

Hey, no picking at Dr. Zitzmor.

When I was attending the University of TX, on football gamedays there would always be a small advertising plane flying in circles above the stadium, dragging one of those long signs with a paid message on it, something like "Get Your Brakes Checked at Brake Check" or "Drink OK Cola!".

On one auspicious occasion, the message on the sign simply read "DON'T RAPE YOUR DATE."

Ahh, the 90s...

An agency I worked with was applying for a grant for similar advertising, basically a "What would your kids think?" reminder for men in how they treat women.

The research shows that it actually does work as a PSA. Sometimes it's just a question of letting people know that the culture at large frowns upon certain behaviors. I think the great strides in combating domestic violence/intimate partner violence over the last couple decades have come about in similar ways.

I like it. It provides some real positive reinforcement for appropriate behavior. And a great positive incentive for men with daughters, too.

Kids might actually talk shit about public service posters on trains, which is a step in the right direction. A few boys start sneering but one of them says or more likely just thinks, not everybody has role models or opportunities for that kind of education, and a lot of us care more about showing off to our friends than we do about pretty much anything else, and you know, if we act the way we bray (which thankfully fewer of us do than it might seem) then we cause incalculable damage. So at least one or two out of a group of boys decides, I know not what course others may take, but as for me, I'll be a role model.

I mean, you're likely right by the numbers, that the number of undecideds who will be swayed by this ad is negligible and the agency put the ad on the train in vain^*, but for some kids, especially staring at the message every day for 45 minutes, it might be somewhat beneficial. It certainly does no harm.

^*YES!

Yeah, maybe people might not be learning something new there, but I feel like a reminder or a nudge in the right direction is always good.

It can be that occasionally, people who are feeling like their life is not working happen to light on little threads like this and act on them. Having these messages always present increases the likelihood that maybe one will hit home in a moment of openness or vulnerability.

It can be that occasionally, people who are feeling like their life is not working happen to light on little threads like this and act on them. Having these messages always present increases the likelihood that maybe one will hit home in a moment of openness or vulnerability.