How To: Get Tanning Salon Ads Out of Your School Newspaper

There are no restrictions on advertising tanning salons to young people, so it’s no surprise the ads are in your paper… but there is something you can about it!

1. Do some research. Find out who’s in charge of these ads – the editor in chief? Advertisements coordinator?
2. Tell ‘em. Write a passionate letter telling him/her you want the tanning salon ads removed and why. Be polite and include compelling facts like: one study found that using a tanning bed regularly is as lethal as taking arsenic or inhaling mustard gas.
3. Try other ways. Don’t give up if you don’t get your way immediately. Have your friends sign a “no tan” pledge. Create a petition demanding that the ads be removed and get your classmates to sign it. Remember, the more people you get to sign and/or pledge, the more powerful your argument will be. Your next step is to take this stuff over to newspaper headquarters.
4. Field trip time! Call or visit the newspaper offices and ask to speak to someone in charge. Provide some forceful facts about the dangers of tanning salons and show that you’re not alone in your worry – here’s where those signatures come in.
5. Offer alternatives. Ask them to print a few facts about tanning salon dangers in place of or next to the ads… It may not generate money for the paper but it will inform young people!