Public service announcement
PSA (aka Public Service Announcement) was also the planned title of the song and single Bad Day by R.E.M. A
public service announcement (PSA) or
community service announcement (CSA) is a non-commercial
advertisement, typically on
radio or
television, broadcast for the
public good.
The main concept is to modify public attitudes by raising awareness about specific issues.
Often, a celebrity promotes a
foundation and asks for support to be given by viewers or listeners. An example being
Michael J. Fox's PSAs in the
US supporting research into
Parkinson's Disease, from which he suffers. Some are public awareness
campaigns, lobbying, for example, against smoking or
compulsive gambling. Other times, they are produced by individuals in prison, as a means of "
scaring straight" listeners. One PSA was produced by
Crips street gang leader
Stanley "Tookie" Williams, urging youth listening not to join gangs. Some religious groups produce PSAs about non-religious themes such as
family values as a means of increasing awareness of their church, and to show the role the church has in serving the community. Examples include a long-running campaign from the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and more recently the
United Methodist Church. Finally, the military produces PSAs to recruit new enlistees. However, more recently they have gone to paid advertising and sponsorship, as recruiting has become more difficult.
The
Ad Council is the largest distributor of PSAs in the United States.
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Crash test dummy - "You can Learn a Lot from a Dummy," Vince and Larry on
seatbelts.
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G.I. Joe's "And knowing is half the battle!"
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Heritage Minutes*
Hinterland Who's Who*
Keep America Beautiful*
Love. It Comes in All Colors*
McGruff the Crime Dog "Take a bite out of crime!"
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Smokey Bear "Only you can prevent forest fires!"
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The More You Know (seen exclusively on the
NBC U.S. Television Network)
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This is Your Brain on Drugs (a frying egg)
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Woodsy Owl*
Crying Indian (advocates against littering)
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Mr. Yuk*
Heather Crowe*
You, Dad! I Learned it From Watching You!*
C.O.P.S. For Kids*
Public Information Film (television spots produced for the British government)
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cause marketing*
propaganda*
Ad Council, the largest distributor of public service announcements in the United States. Another leading producer of public service announcements is the Partnership for a Drug-Free America (www.drugfree.org), the group that created the "This is your brain on drugs" tv spot.
