A public service announcement (PSA) is a message in the public interest disseminated by the media without charge to raise public awareness and change behavior. Oftentimes these messages feature unsettling imagery, ideas or behaviors that are designed to startle or even scare the viewer into understanding the consequences of undergoing a particular harmful action or inaction (such as pictures of drug users before and after their addiction or realistic skits of domestic violence situations) as well as the importance of avoiding such choices. In the UK, they are generally called a public information film (PIF); in Hong Kong, they are known as an announcement in the public interest (API). [1]
The earliest public service announcements (in the form of moving pictures) were made before and during the Second World War years in both the UK and the US.
In the UK, amateur actor Richard Massingham set up Public Relationship Films Ltd. in 1938 as a specialist agency for producing short educational films for the public. In the films, he typically played a bumbling character who was slightly more stupid than average and often explained the message of the film by demonstrating the risks if it were ignored. The films covered topics such as how to cross the road, how to prevent the spread of diseases, how to swim, and how to drive without causing the road to be unsafe for other users. During the war, he was commissioned by the UK Ministry of Information to produce films for the war effort. [2] Massingham began to produce longer films, for both private companies and the Government, after the War.
In the US, the Ad Council (initially called the War Advertising Council) was set up in 1941, when America entered World War II. [3] It began implementing on a massive scale the idea of using advertising to influence American society on a range of fronts. Its first campaigns focused on the country's needs during World War II, such as encouraging the American public to invest their savings in government bonds.
After the war, PIFs were used to educate the public on a broader range of issues. In the UK, they were produced for the Central Office of Information (COI), and again by private contractors, which were usually small film companies, such as Richard Taylor Cartoons. They were supplied to broadcasters free of charge for use at any time. Their utility as a cost-free means to fill the gaps in commercial breaks left by unsold advertising airtime has led to their regular usage since the 1960s.
The most common topics of PSAs are health and safety, such as the multimedia "Emergency Preparedness & Safety Tips On Air and Online" talk radio campaign. [4] [5] A typical PSA is part of a public awareness campaign to inform or educate the public about an issue such as obesity or compulsive gambling.
One of the earliest television public service announcements came in the form of Smokey Bear whose "Only you can prevent forest fires" campaign ran for decades. [6] Other common early themes were traffic safety, especially safe crossing, wearing seat belts and not driving drunk, and the dangers of cigarette smoking.
A charitable organization may enlist the support of a celebrity for a PSA; examples include actress Kathryn Erbe telling people to be green and Crips gang leader Stanley Williams speaking from prison to urge youths not to join gangs or commit crimes.
Some television shows featuring very special episodes made PSAs after the episodes. For example, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit talked about child abduction in one episode, with a PSA about child abduction airing after the episode. After My Sister Sam was canceled in 1988, surviving cast members: Pam Dawber, Joel Brooks, Jenny O'Hara, and David Naughton were reunited to film a PSA for the center to Prevent Handgun Violence on gun control after the murder of their co-star, Rebecca Schaeffer, who was gunned down by a crazed fan on July 18, 1989, at Schaeffer's apartment in Los Angeles.
During the 1980s, many American cartoon shows contained PSAs at the end of their shows to satisfy federal regulations that required programming for children to be educational. Examples include the closing moral segments at the end of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe , the "Knowing is Half the Battle" epilogues in G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero ,’’The Transformers (TV series)’’, Jem , M.A.S.K. , Inspector Gadget , and the "Sonic Says" segments from Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog .
PSAs are used as placeholders for unsold commercials.
PSAs in South Korea are produced by the Public Service Advertising Council, an organization under the Korea Broadcasting Advertisement Corporation (KOBACO). The Public Service Advertising Council is in charge of advisory roles such as selecting the topic of PSAs broadcast in Korea for one year, establishing public relations measures, and seeking strategies. The Public Service Advertising Council is made up of about 15 persons nominated by advertising academia, broadcasting, advertising industry, and civic groups.
The organization evolved from the 'Broadcasting Advertising Improvement Advisory Committee' formed on August 18, 1981. After going through the 'Public Service Advertising Improvement Advisory Committee' on February 7, 1983, the name was changed to the current name on July 1, 1988.
As of 2020, there are a total of 400 PSAs produced by the KOBACO.
China's first PSAs in 1986 were about saving water and were broadcast on Guiyang television.[ citation needed ] In Hong Kong, terrestrial television networks have been required since National Day 2004 to preface their main evening news broadcasts with a minute-long announcement in the public interest which plays the Chinese National Anthem in Mandarin over various patriotic montages. [7] [10]
Filem Negara Malaysia (FNM) became the early pioneers of PSAs from its establishment in 1946. PSAs produced by FNM have topics such as dengue fever, drug addiction, environmental pollution, road safety and electricity usage. Governmental agencies such as Ministry of Health have produced PSAs to promote their Healthy Lifestyle Campaign which held annually since 1991, with the "Utamakan Kesihatan" ("Prioritize Health") logo appearing at the end of their ads, most notably PSAs about AIDS.
PSAs on road safety were produced by Ministry of Transport, particularly on accidents amongst motorcyclists and alcohol consumption amongst drivers. Some of their ads also using "Anda Mampu Mengubahnya" ("You Can Make a Difference") slogan and also using some of famous actors and actresses including the late Adibah Noor and Nabil Ahmad. Ministry of Science, Technology and the Environment also produces PSAs focusing on environmental pollution. PSAs on corruption and bribery were produced by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Agency (now Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission). Most of these PSAs were aired on Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM) and TV Pendidikan between the 1990s and 2000s. Private TV networks like TV3 have also produced in-house PSAs, covering topics such as not downloading pirated content, some of which feature actress and infotainer, Janna Nick; and domestic violence which features actress Eyra Hazali.
There was a series of animated PSAs that was made by Filem Negara Malaysia from 2008 till 2013 which is also commonly known as "Pak Abu PSAs" and was frequently shown in Malaysian TV channels. [11]
In 2021, the Malaysia Government produced a series of PSAs known as "Lindung Diri, Lindung Semua" ("Protect Yourself, Protect All"). The PSAs cover information about COVID-19 vaccines and the benefits of vaccination. The series also features the Prime Minister of Malaysia at that time, Muhyiddin Yassin. [12]
IAA Responsibility Awards is an annual international festival of public service announcements, held by the International Advertising Association since 2008. [13]
International broadcasting consists of radio and television transmissions that purposefully cross international boundaries, often with then intent of allowing expatriates to remain in touch with their countries of origin as well as educate, inform, and influence residents of foreign countries. Content can range from overt propaganda and counterpropaganda to cultural content to news reports that reflect the point of view and concerns of the originating country or that seek to provide alternative information to that otherwise available as well as promote tourism and trade. In the first half of the twentieth century, international broadcasting was used by colonial empires as a means of connecting colonies with the metropole. When operated by governments or entities close to a government, international broadcasting can be a form of soft power. Less frequently, international broadcasting has been undertaken for commercial purposes by private broadcasters.
Public broadcasting involves radio, television, and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service. Public broadcasters receive funding from diverse sources including license fees, individual contributions, public financing, and commercial financing, and claim to avoid both political interference and commercial influence.
Smokey Bear is an American campaign and advertising icon of the U.S. Forest Service in the Wildfire Prevention Campaign, which is the longest-running public service announcement campaign in United States history to date. The Ad Council, the Forest Service, and the National Association of State Foresters, in partnership with the creative agency FCB, use the character of Smokey Bear to educate the public about the dangers of unplanned human-caused wildfires.
ARD is a joint organisation of Germany's regional public-service broadcasters. It was founded in 1950 in West Germany to represent the common interests of the new, decentralised, post-war broadcasting services – in particular the introduction of a joint television network.
The Advertising Council, commonly known as Ad Council, is an American nonprofit organization that produces, distributes, and promotes public service announcements or PSAs on behalf of various sponsors, including nonprofit organizations, non-governmental organizations and agencies of the United States government.
Channel 8 is a Singaporean Mandarin-language free-to-air terrestrial television channel in Singapore, owned by state media conglomerate Mediacorp. The channel broadcasts general entertainment and news programming in the Mandarin language, including original and imported programming.
The house hippo is a fictitious species of hippopotamus, and the subject of a Canadian television public service announcement (PSA) produced by Concerned Children's Advertisers in May 1999 and reintroduced by MediaSmarts in 2019.
Sistem Televisyen Malaysia Berhad, operating as TV3, is a Malaysian free-to-air television channel owned by Malaysian media conglomerate, Media Prima. TV3 is the third oldest TV station in Malaysia. It was launched on 1 June 1984 as the country's first and oldest private television channel. As of October 2021, TV3 remains to be the most-watched television station in Malaysia with about 17% of its viewing share among other Malaysian television stations, followed by TV9 with 15% of its viewing share, making two of them become the second most-watched television station in the country, despite the declining viewership of 3 free-to-air television channels.
Radio Televisyen Malaysia, also known as the Department of Broadcasting, Malaysia is the national public broadcaster of Malaysia, headquartered at Angkasapuri, Kuala Lumpur. Established on 1 April 1946 as Radio Malaya, it is the first and the oldest broadcaster in the country.
Public information films (PIFs) are a series of government-commissioned short films, shown during television advertising breaks in the United Kingdom. The name is sometimes also applied, faute de mieux, to similar films from other countries, but the US equivalent is the public service announcement (PSA). Public information films were commonplace from the 1950s until the 2000s. However, they became obsolete with the closure of the Central Office of Information.
MBC Group, formerly known as Middle East Broadcasting Center, is a Saudi media conglomerate based in the Middle East and North Africa region. Launched in London in 1991, the company moved its headquarters to Dubai in 2002 and to Riyadh in 2022. It is majority owned by the Saudi government-operated Public Investment Fund.
The More You Know is a series of public service announcements (PSAs) broadcast on the NBCUniversal family of networks in the United States and other locations, featuring educational messages. These PSAs are broadcast occasionally during NBC's network programming.
The National Film Department of Malaysia, abbreviated FNM, sometimes Jabatan Filem Negara (JFN) or informally the Malaysian Film Unit; was a Malaysian film production house and the government department under the Malaysian Ministry of Communications and Multimedia. It is responsible for the filming and documentation of national events as well as producing factual and unscripted narrative contents. The film department, which headquartered at Petaling Jaya, Selangor, uses a jumping Malayan tiger as its logo.
The National Film Development Corporation Malaysia, abbreviated FINAS, is the central government agency and governing body for the film industry of Malaysia. Its role is to regulate economic and commercial matters related to the film industry in Malaysia and responsible for film policies and programs to ensure the economic, cultural and educational development of the Malaysian film industry as well as providing funds to filmmakers and film studios. FINAS is similar to the Film Development Council of the Philippines in the Philippines and Motion Picture Association of America in the United States. In 2013, the corporation was merged with Filem Negara Malaysia (FNM) to form a sole film agency.
BusRadio was an American company established in 2004, with the goal of providing several services to school buses, their drivers and passengers. It was envisioned that the service would transmit music, original programming, public service announcements (PSAs) and paid commercials to school children travelling on school buses in selected school districts. BusRadio was based in Needham, Massachusetts.
Educational advertisements are ad campaigns in which the creators attempt to inform, update, or persuade the public to engage in or avoid current issues. This type of advertisement is often negatively associated with propaganda. While similar to public service announcements, educational advertisements often cross into commercial fields whereas public service announcements are oriented on strict non-profit basis. Educational advertisements focus on a number of modern social, political, religious, and consumer-based issues. They traditionally appear on television and radio, but more and more campaigns are turning to the internet, especially email, as a cheap and efficient way to spread their messages. While most educational advertisements are deployed in the United States of America, there have been campaigns across Europe, Canada, and New Zealand. However, due to the dependence on technology to broadcast their messages, campaigns usually appear in developed countries where the largest possible population is likely to encounter their message.
Abdul Mubin Sheppard, born Mervyn Cecil ffrank Sheppard, pen name M. C. ff Sheppard, was a Malaysian World War II veteran and prisoner of war, as well as a renowned historian and academic.
Partnership to End Addiction, formerly called The Partnership for a Drug Free America, is a non-profit organization aiming to prevent the misuse of illegal drugs. The organization is most widely known for its TV ad This Is Your Brain on Drugs.
Korea Broadcast Advertising Corporation (KOBACO) is the only media representative in South Korea operating as an agency that represents every terrestrial broadcasting company of South Korea for their broadcast advertising sales. KOBACO was established in 1981 and it was re-established as a government-funded public media representative in May 2012.
TV advertisements by country refers to how television advertisements vary in different countries and regions.
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