Public Service Announcements (PSAs)
For Recovery Month 2004 SAMHSA produced two new radio and television public service announcements. The 2004 PSAs were developed to inform the public about the effectiveness of treatment for alcohol and drug use disorders, the nature of addiction and the recovery process, and the tremendous need to increase treatment service capacity across the country. The 2004 PSAs were "Boat," which demonstrates that all people who suffer from alcohol and drug use disorders are "in the same boat" and that treatment helps them to reach solid ground, and "Tony" which illustrates how getting help through treatment can enable a person to help others, thereby multiplying the effect of one person's treatment. The broadcast PSAs put an everyday face on addiction and recovery, and offer SAMHSA's 24 hour, toll free National Helpline, 1 800 662-HELP, as the call to action if viewers, or someone they know, is in need of treatment. All PSAs were produced in English and Spanish.
The "Boat" 2004 English and Spanish TV and radio PSA spots received play as part of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy's (ONDCP) Media Match Campaign/Ad council reel. In the past, placement of SAMHSA PSAs on the ONDCP/Ad Council reel has generated over $1 million in additional free airtime.
In addition to the 2004 public service announcements, SAMHSA continued to track previous years' spots throughout 2004. These spots-Crosswalk, Psyched Up, Runner, Subtitles, Accomplishment, Drain, How To and Kid-were all produced in English and Spanish and made an enormous impact on people in recovery and those who have helped them on their path to recovery.
SAMHSA also created open ended spots for customization. These open ended spots allowed local television stations and community groups to personalize the PSAs with their logo, slogan, or telephone number at the end of the PSA. These spots were available via SAMHSA's National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information (NCADI).
In addition to the placement of the spots on the Ad Council reel, SAMHSA distributed the PSAs to national and local stations. The results are listed below.
Television PSAs
The 2004 television spots, Boat and Tony, were produced in English and Spanish in 15-second and 30-second lengths and distributed to 1,700 TV stations and networks, including 76 Spanish stations nationwide. From June through December 2004, the PSAs aired 30,580 times through 145 outlets reaching 120 cities in 46 states, at an estimated earned media value of $1,157,466 and 36,962,180 in viewer impressions. Additionally, the eight spots released in previous years continued to air, producing an estimated earned media value of $2,675,132 and 295,153,980 in viewer impressions. In total, the overall estimated earned media value for all television PSAs aired in 2004 is $3,832,598 with a collective viewer impression of 332,116,160.
Radio PSAs
The 2004 radio spots, Boat and Tony, were produced in English and Spanish in 15-second and 30-second lengths and were distributed to 3,500 radio stations nationwide. From June through December 2004, the radio spots were broadcast 57,659 times through 349 outlets reaching 211 cities in 47 states, resulting in an estimated earned media value of $606,383 and 4,068,711 in listener impressions. Additionally, the eight spots released in previous years continued to air, producing an estimated earned media value of $1,986,935 and 217,112,362 in listener impressions. In total, the overall estimated earned media value for all radio PSAs aired in 2004 is $2,593,318 with a collective listener impression of 221,181,073.
