A public service announcement (PSA) or community service announcement (CSA) is a non-commercial advertisement broadcast on radio or television, ostensibly for the public good. PSAs are intended to modify public attitudes by raising awareness about specific issues.

In the United States

The most common topics of PSAs are health and safety, although any message considered to be "helpful" to the public can be a PSA.^{citation needed} A typical PSA will be part of a public awareness campaign to inform or educate the public about an issue such as smoking or compulsive gambling.

Often, a charitable organization releasing a PSA enlists the support of a celebrity; examples include Michael J. Fox's PSAs in the U.S. supporting research into Parkinson's Disease and Crips street gang leader Stanley "Tookie" Williams speaking from prison to urge youth not to join gangs.

Some religious groups produce PSAs on non-religious themes such as family values. Examples include the long-running "Homefront" campaign from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Seventh-day Adventist Church, and more recently the United Methodist Church.

The military produces PSAs to recruit enlistees, in addition to paid advertising and sponsorship efforts.

In the U.S, the role of PSAs was affected by deregulation of the broadcasting industry in the 1980s. Previously, a broadcast license was assigned to a television or radio station that was expected to serve as a "public trustee" by airing PSAs (in addition to meeting other requirements). Continued licensure no longer depends strictly on programming content, and the number of PSAs that are deliberately scheduled has declined.^{citation needed}

The Ad Council is the largest producer of PSAs in the United States.^{citation needed} Other producers distribute traditional PSAs distributed to station directors.

Well-known PSAs

• "Do you know where your children are?"
• "Don't Copy That Floppy"
• Jem: "Doing the right thing makes you a superstar!"
• Sailor Moon (American version): "Sailor Moon Says!"
• The Incredible Crash Dummies: "You can learn a lot from a Dummy."
• G.I. Joe and Transformers: "And knowing is half the battle!"
• Heritage Minutes
• Hinterland Who's Who
• "Just Say No"
• "Crying Indian" (sponsored by Keep America Beautiful)
• "Love. It Comes in All Colors"
• "Learn Not to Burn" with Dick van Dyke
• McGruff the Crime Dog: "Take a bite out of crime!"
• NBC's One to Grow On
• Smokey Bear: "Only you can prevent forest fires!" and "Only You Can Prevent wildfires!"
• NBC's The More You Know
• This is Your Brain on Drugs
• I learned it by watching you
• I'm not a chicken, you're a turkey
• Woodsy Owl: "Give a hoot, don't pollute!" and "Lend a hand — care for the land!"
• Mr. Yuk
• Heather Crowe
• C.O.P.S. For Kids
• "Don't You Put It In Your Mouth" (sponsored by Health Canada)
• American Indian College Fund: "If I Stay on the Rez"
• Marine Corps Toys for Tots
• The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog: "Sonic Sez" One segment became a YTMND page ("That's no good!")
• Captain Planet and the Planeteers: "Planeteer Alert!"
• Inspector Gadget: "Gadget Team Alert!"
• Click It or Ticket
• The Faster the Speed, the Bigger the Mess
• "FUR...You Deserve It" (anti-fur trading)
• Above the Influence
• Yul Brynner: Now that I'm gone, I tell you: don't smoke. (sponsored by American Cancer Society).
• DoDo Cheng: "Travel Insurance means Travel Reassurance"^[1]
• Andy Lau: Customer Service, Quality Tourism Services^[2][3]

See also

• Cause marketing
• Public information film

External links

• An example of a public service announcement
• Ad Council, the largest producer of public service announcements in the United States.
• Salo Productions, producer of traditional public service announcements distributed to TV and radio station PSA directors.
• WestGlen Communications, a consultant, producer, and distributor of PSAs on television, radio, and the web.
• Goodwill Communications, Goodwill Communications, a distributor of public service materials to all media with a division specializing in cause related marketing.
• PSA Research Center, the only on-line information center dedicated solely to public service advertising, social issues and cause marketing.
• Partnership for a Drug-Free America, a well-known sponsor of public service announcements on a specific theme. The group behind the "This is your brain on drugs" TV spot.
• Homefront, 30 year campaign funded by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, promoting family values.
• American Indian College Fund, providing Tribal College scholarships to Native American students around the country.
• VIHdeo America: an anthology of 10 years of HIV TV spots in the Americas