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SW: →History: tidy - see edit notes
==History==
The Ad Council was incorporated in February 1942 as the War Advertising Council for the purpose of mobilizing the advertising industry in support of the war effort. Early campaigns encouraged the purchase of war bonds and conservation of war materials. The long-running Forest Fire Prevention campaign, with [[Smokey Bear]] as its famous mascot, also began as a war campaign in response to the fear that Japan submarines might start forest fires by shelling the west coast of the United States. After the conclusion of the Second World War the War Advertising Council changed its name to the Advertising Council and shifted its focus to peacetime campaigns. According to documents from <ref>[http://www.adcouncil.org/timeline.html "The Story of the Ad Council's archives"], the group aimed to enhance public opinion of and co-opt liberal opposition to advertising by using it to promote liberal and popular causesAd Council, accessed October 2007.</ref>
Famous campaigns include the "[[Iron Eyes Cody|Crying Indian]]" anti-pollution campaign for [[Keep America Beautiful]]; the [[United Negro College Fund]] campaign, with its slogan "A mind is a terrible thing to waste"; the [[McGruff the Crime Dog|McGruff]] campaign with its slogan "Take a bite out of crime" for the [[National Crime Prevention Council]] (in conjunction with the [[United States Department of Justice|U.S. Department of Justice]]); and the "Friends don't let friends drive drunk" campaign for the [[United States Department of Transportation|U.S. Department of Transportation]].
