Calif. Milk Board Tweaks PMS Ad Campaign

Responding to a wave of criticism, the California Milk Processor Board modified an advertising campaign yesterday that targeted men by promoting milk as a way to lessen the effects of PMS. It altered its two-week-old campaign, which portrayed men as the victims of temperamental women, by redirecting users from its website, www.everythingidoiswrong.org, to another that will encourage discussion of the issue. A spokeswoman for the ad campaign said it succeeded in promoting the board's message that milk can soften the effects of PMS symptoms.

The campaign's original website showed pictures of men around features as a color-coded "current global PMS level" and "video apology enhancer." The milk board posted an apology on its updated web page and thanked everyone who responded. "Over the past couple of weeks, regrettably, some people found our campaign about milk and PMS to be outrageous ad misguided—and we apologize for those we offended. Others thought it funny and educational. It has opened up a topic that affects women, of course, but also relationships." (More PMS stories.)