Help Get Tobacco Out of Youth-Rated Movies
Background on Screen Out!
The New York State Department of Health and the University of
California at San Francisco developed the national action program,
Screen Out!, to raise awareness about the harm on-screen tobacco
use causes and to garner support for the Smoke Free Movies
campaign. In October 2006, the American Medical Association (AMA)
Alliance joined the Smoke Free Movies movement giving a powerful,
national voice to the Screen Out! campaign. TMA joined AMA
Alliance's campaign in June 2008.
The three goals identified to be reached during the three-year
duration of its Screen Out! campaign:
- Write 800 letters to the Motion Picture Association of
America and other decision makers;
- Gather 750,000 parent petition signatures in support of the
four solutions set forth by the Screen Out! Campaign; and
- Garner 1,500 Screen Out! endorsements from parent, political,
health and school-based organizations.
How to Get Involved
Screen Out! provides several easy ways for physicians, students and
TMA Alliance members to get involved. Here are four outreach
tactics you can employ to create awareness of Screen Out! in your
community:
- Write letters to movie studios, the Motion Picture
Association of America (MPAA), and movie theater owners. Go to
www.screenout.org
to find contact information for the MPAA.
- Gather
petition signatures
.
- Garner organizational endorsements. Meet with your alliance
or community organization to brainstorm possible organizations
and groups that would be interested in supporting the Screen Out!
principles. Some organizations that might be interested in
supporting the Screen Out! campaign are Parent-Teacher
Associations, local health departments, hospitals, churches,
retailers that sell DVDs, movie theaters, and schools and
churches.
- Create media outreach. Local media can help publicize your
efforts and also garner public attention from local citizens on
the issue.
Outreach Tools
The success of this campaign relies on you getting involved. Take
action today by using one or all of the tools and resources
developed for you.
Screen Out!
Toolkit
. To download tools and learn how to get involved in the
campaign,
click here
.
-
Gather Petitions.
Ask people in your community to sign the
Screen Out Petition
.
-
Write letters.
Ask patients, parents and key stakeholder to
write letters
to the chiefs of movie studios, the MPAA and movie theater
owners.
-
Collect Organizational Endorsements
. An
organizational endorsement
demonstrates to the movie industry that a network of state, local
and national groups are concerned with on-screen tobacco
promotion in youth-rated films and support the four solutions of
the Screen Out! campaign.
-
Media Outreach
. Be sure to publicize your petition drive or other
events to your local media. Go to
Media Outreach
to download press releases, letters to the editor and other
resources to reach out to the press.
Screen Out! In The News
Last Updated On
September 09, 2010
Originally Published On
March 23, 2010