"Just F. Meth": Government bets on blunt anti-drug campaign
The New Zealand government has launched a $1.6 million anti-methamphetamine campaign titled 'F. Meth' to address drug addiction. The campaign uses provocative branding to engage the public and encourage those struggling with addiction to seek help.
Why it matters
Public health campaigns often struggle with engagement; this initiative tests whether provocative, blunt messaging can effectively reach at-risk populations.
The government has launched a deliberately provocative anti-meth campaign with a blunt message - "F. Meth" - after an earlier effort fell flat.
The slogan has intentionally been left open to interpretation, with officials suggesting meanings including fight meth, face meth, forget meth or be free from meth.
But for some with lived experience of the drug, the message is more explicit: f*** meth.
Community advocate Tee Tanielu is one of the faces of the campaign, alongside her partner Flo Murray.
Speaking to RNZ at the launch in Porirua on Thursday morning, Tanielu picked a more complicated word: "forgive".
Flo Murray (L) and Tee Tanielu (R) with their child (centre)
"For a lot of us, including myself, meth wasn't the problem; it was the solution. And so, sometimes we have to move past what it did in order to finally get to why we used it."
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