American attitudes toward marijuana use change

Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps lost an endorsement from Kellogg’s after the publication of photos that showed him smoking marijuana. But the champion swimmer will anchor a national advertising campaign for Subway – it’ll describe how hungry a guy like him can get in a way that slyly refers to pot-induced “munchies.”

Emily York, a writer for the trade magazine Ad Age, says that suggests a shift in the culture of “Just Say No to Drugs.”

Emily York: "This Michael Phelps instance proves that the stigma attached to any kind of marijuana use is absolutely dwindling. A sandwich chain like Subway that markets to children and is a very family-friendly chain. They did actually wait a few days to say they were going to stick by him, and they did back-burner the campaign for a few months, but he’s going to be the, the leading spokesman for the brand for the next few years."

York spoke with KPCC’s "Patt Morrison." She notes that America’s moved a long way from presidential candidate Bill Clinton’s hedging on the pot-smoking issue by claiming he didn’t inhale.