Broadcasters Donate Over $32 Million in Airtime

RADIO ONLINE | Friday, January 26, 2018

NAB

The NAB has announced that local radio and television stations and their broadcast network partners have donated more than $32 million in airtime for public service announcements (PSAs) focused on opioid abuse awareness and prevention. This includes 253,783 radio and TV airings between September, 2016 and December, 2017. The PSAs are part of a campaign launched by NAB and the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids.

NAB teamed with the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids (Partnership), a national nonprofit organization committed to helping families struggling with their son or daughter's substance use, on a multi-faceted campaign to raise awareness about the rising opioid epidemic. PSAs included Partnership-produced messages directing viewers and listeners to life-saving information as well as PSAs produced in conjunction with NAB's bi-annual Congressional PSA Campaign. Prior to the launch of the campaign, CBS-TV Network, ABC-owned TV stations and iHeartMedia had already carried more than $15 million in Partnership PSAs.

"The effects of the opioid epidemic are tragic and far-reaching. I applaud local radio and television stations for their efforts to raise awareness and provide critical information on preventing addiction and abuse," said NAB President and CEO Gordon Smith. "We appreciate broadcasters' generous support of this important initiative and encourage stations to continue to access the online toolkit at NAB.org/addiction for facts and statistics related to the epidemic, as well as programming and community outreach ideas."

"Broadcasters are a lifeline to communities in times of crisis, and they have played a crucial role in reaching families amidst this public health epidemic," said Fred Muench, President and CEO of the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids. "We sincerely appreciate broadcasters' collaboration in driving awareness of life-saving resources, like our free Helpline at 855-DRUGFREE, and look forward to their continued support in carrying new PSAs we'll launch this spring."