• by Danielle Oster , Yesterday

Illinois introduced a PSA campaign last year to raise awareness of its extreme-risk laws, which let friends and family temporarily take away firearms from at-risk individuals. The new phase of the campaign shares stories through the perspective of those who filed for the orders..

One study examining an Indiana extreme-risk law estimated the measure prevented roughly one suicide for every 10 orders enforced. Often, though, individuals are unaware of such measures.

In Illinois, which has a similar firearm restraining order (FRO) law, only about 10% of respondents in a March 2024 survey by the Ad Council and C+R Research said they were aware of the state’s FRO law, which echoes similar findings from the Ad Council Research Institute’s 2023 national study on the issue.

To tackle the issue, Illinois and the Ad Council are continuing a “Pause to Heal” PSA campaign for the second consecutive year.

The campaign dramatizes the issue through stories based on real events, brought to life by director Deborah Riley Draper and her creative company, Coffee Bluff Pictures.

This year’s three ads are from the perspective of the person filing for the FRO to remove access to firearms from an individual in crisis. Each “Pause to Heal” scenario addresses how such orders benefit the individual in crisis, as well as those filing for the FRO. 

Allie Baum, vice president, campaign for the Ad Council, told Marketing Daily, “It was important to us that these stories be grounded in reality and highlight distinct – but widely relevant – experiences in which our audience could see themselves or their loved ones to increase the openness to learning more about this as a potential intervention. We heard through research that often someone who has a loved one in crisis has tried everything and isn’t sure which way to turn.”

The campaign will run in Illinois through paid and donated media across broadcast TV, digital, online video, radio and print.

“Pause To Heal” kicked off last year, as a complement to the Ad Council and national gun violence prevention group Brady’s “End Family Fire” campaign, with its first phase wrapping up last month. According to the Ad Council, the campaign received more than 77 million multimedia impressions, helping to drive over 100,000 visits to the campaign landing page providing educational information about FROs.

According to the Ad Council, the approach taken with the “Pause to Heal” is grounded in audience-based research, beginning with its 2023 national Extreme Risk Protective Order study.

“While our approach is updated with new insights and data each year, it remains grounded in the simple human insight that bullets move faster than people heal,” Baum said. “And because of the lethality of a firearm, when a person is in crisis, putting time and space between them and a gun can save lives.”

“Through these scenarios based on actual stories of extreme risk laws filed, the viewer experiences the emotional journey alongside the petitioner, all the way to that sense of relief as the crisis is paused and the healing journey begins,” Baum added. “Our creative testing among a representative sample in Illinois revealed that this approach is extremely effective at motivating people to want to visit a website to learn more.”