Future:Media:Change

Still searching for that perfect holiday gift for the woman in your life? Gold might be evil, sure a diamond may be forever, but a pap smear is her best friend.

Matthew Margo led the charge on CBS Cares' pap smear and menpause campaigns

If being memorable is the key to advertising, than Matthew Margo knows his business. As the Senior Vice President of Program Practices, East Coast at CBS, Margo is the driving force behind their recent CBS Cares Pap Smear Campaign. He heads the department that approves and rejects advertising on the network, and produces CBS Cares campaigns — the networks pro-social arm. He details how the idea came to him in one of those oh-so-frequent Overheard in New York moments.

I was waiting for my appetizer when I overheard two women diners talking about pap smears. The one in her 40’s said she hated pap smears. The one in her 30’s enthusiastically agreed. And they both said they do whatever they can to postpone them.

Part of their conversation was masked by the loud conversation of other diners. From what I could gather, the problem was that the gynecologist’s instrument is refrigerated. I thought I heard the words, “Really cold spatula!” But I later learned that the gynecologist’s instrument is actually called a “speculum” (meaning I’d either misheard the word spatula… or simultaneously picked up part of a conversation taking place in Il Mulino’s kitchen).

In any case, I shuddered at the thought of a cold instrument being used for such a medical screening and hardly noticed as the waiter shaved large chunks of parmesan cheese onto my side plate.

As the appetizer arrived (lightly fried calamari drizzled with a really great spicy marinara sauce), I was asking myself the question, “Should CBS Cares do a project on pap smears? Why had we not seen public service campaigns on the subject?”
(via CBS Cares)

Margo pushed forward with the campaign, which encourages men to give the gift of a pap smear for ChristmasMerry Christmas reviews or Hanukkah. No gynecological gifts for Ramadan apparently. Pap smears can help prevent cervical cancer and save lives, but I don’t suggest that men should count on this as their last-minute holiday surprise. However, I’m not married, maybe wives love this?

This isn’t exactly new territory for Margo. Last holiday season, CBS asked women to schedule prostate exams for the men in their lives. He won praise from the North American Menopause Society for the CBS Cares Menopause campaign. I guess Matthew Margo knows what women want.

Ladies, what do you think? To smear or not to smear this holiday? Leave a comment.