News Release
October 2003
(Bethlehem, PA.)— National media literacy expert Dr. Peter DeBenedittis
will present “Seduce Me: Blow Away the Ashes,” an entertaining
program exposing the manipulative tactics used by tobacco companies
to market their products, on Wednesday, October 15 at 7 p.m. in Prosser
Auditorium at Moravian College. The program is hosted by Moravian College
in conjunction with Coalition for a Smoke-Free Valley, the Department
of Health, and American Legacy Foundation. Admission is free and the
lecture is open to the public; reservations are encouraged for groups
of six or more.
DeBenedittis is recognized as one of America’s
leading experts on media literacy and tobacco advertising. In his powerful
and
often
life-altering presentation, DeBenedittis focuses on tobacco prevention,
body image, and corporate manipulation. He teaches about media literacy
and reveals the many ways in which marketers target college campuses.
DeBenedittis has presented at four national conferences on tobacco
and health and is a consultant for the CDC Office on Smoking and
Health and the National Cancer Institute. He has trained thousands
of teachers,
prevention specialists, and health promotion workers across the country.
Before becoming a speaker and educator, DeBenedittis worked with
the New Mexico Media Literacy Project.
Using state-of-the-art multimedia
deconstructions, DeBenedittis educates
while entertaining—on the topics of tobacco prevention, underage
and binge drinking, violence prevention, eating disorders, body image,
parenting around media, and consumerism.
Having previously run an ad
agency for 10 years,. DeBenedittis now uses his advertising knowledge
to educate for prevention rather than
seduce for profits. He was featured in a recent episode of the CBS
new magazine 48 Hours for his work teaching media literacy.
For more
information or to make reservations, please call the Coalition for
a Smoke-Free Valley at (610) 402-4855.
