Diplo Turns to Scare Tactics in Unsettling Anti-Drug PSA

Diplo has a new music out with Waka Flocka, LNY TNZ, and Yellow Claw for the track Techno. The video showcases the drug business from manufacturing to end user. The storyline of the video is that a couple of drug manufacturers approach an elderly man on a farm to use his barn to produce large quantities of Ecstasy. The elderly man reluctantly agrees to the proposition, only because his beautiful young daughter is going to college and college is not cheap. As you can already imagine, the drugs end up in the daughter’s possession, leading to overdose and death.

The fact is that this is a reality in the music scene. What Diplo is trying to do is to encourage people to not use drugs. In fact, the he ends the video with a black background with the words “Drugs Are Not Worth The Risk” written across the screen. We agree that drugs should be taken seriously and come with serious consequences. However, the fear-mongering approach suggests that Diplo may be completely out touch with this community. He may serve better in a position with the failed DARE campaign of the early 90s.

We are not criticizing Diplo for wanting a drug-free dance community. We are criticizing his approach to creating that community, in the hopes that he might take a more realistic approach to the goal rather than using ineffective scare tactics or banning Kandi. According to a study published in June of 2008 by Prevention.org called the”Ineffectiveness of fear appeals in youth tabacco, alchohol, and other drugs (ATOD) prevention”,

“..Scare tactics have been widely used in our field for decades, research has shown that they are not effective in preventing or producing sustained reductions of ATOD use among youth”

If you would like to read about more effective tactics, simply read that article. Watch the video below. Let us know what you think about it in the comments below and share with us how you think Diplo could do a better job at reducing drug abuse and harm in our community.