In the case of meth addiction, I’d argue yes. It’s a hard issue to get people talking about.

No one pays any attention when people tell their stories about lost loved ones or squandered potential because everyone’s heard them a million times before. In the context of the essay, those stories are “tasteless water.” We’ve been wading through them for so long that we don’t even notice they’re there. Those stories also depress people. They make people aware there’s a problem, but don’t necessarily compel them to find out how they can help solve it.

That the “Meth. We’re on it.” campaign is objectively funny may actually end up explaining its success. There’s a great quote, generally attributed to George Bernard Shaw, that goes: “If you want to tell people the truth, make them laugh, otherwise they’ll kill you.” This campaign breaks through the apathy around meth addiction and is certainly getting people talking.

It will remain to be seen if that conversation can be channeled into action, but that there’s even the chance for that to happen means this campaign is an improvement on what’s come before.