Community Relations

The Cable Television Public Affairs Associaion (CTPAA) annually sponsors the Beacon Awards program. The Beacons honor excellence in public affairs campaigns and community outreach projects. This year, CTPAA received 442 Beacon entries, evidence of the strong and continuing commitment by the cable industry to public affairs. Members from MSOs, cable systems, programming networks, state associations and industry suppliers submitted entries in the areas of education and community, customer, employee, government, industry and media relations. While setting a standard for their colleagues to emulate, Beacon Award finalists and winners achieve peer, industry and local market recognition for their exemplary work. Golden Beacon The Golden Beacon Award is the association's highest honor. CTPAA awards the Golden Beacon to a public affairs initiative that has made an impact within the cable industry and has enhanced cable's image nationwide. The 2001 winner is VH1's Save the Music. The program's two primary missions are to restore music education programs in America's public schools and to raise awareness of the positive impact music participation has on students. There is a large base of scientific evidence that shows early involvement with active music participation leads to increased spatial reasoning skills, improved reading, and higher math and verbal scores on standardized tests. However, music programs over the past several decades have eroded due to school budget cuts and a lack of understanding of the educational value of these programs. VH1 Save The Music is a public affairs initiative for the cable television industry that aligns VH1 affiliates with a program to restore local public school music education programs. Schools in cities across the country submitted their applications to VH1 and were chosen by VH1, the affiliate and the education boards within each market. It is the Foundation's belief that by directly purchasing the instuments, contributions will be used for its intended purpose. Once schools have been selected to participate in the program, VH1 Save The Music works with music educators to implement a well integrated and sustainable program that will grow and improve each year. During 2000, VH1 Save The Music Foundation restored 214 instrumental music education programs in 40 cities and installed $5,000,000 worth of musical instruments in public schools across the country. There was extensive television and print media coverage for all affiliaterelated and VH1 events on a local and national level. More importantly, the problem confronting music education was addressed through public awareness, media attention, public policy and federal legislation. By the year 2007 through future partnerships with their affiliates, VH1 Save The Music would like to institute $100,000,000 in total support and bring music programs to 1 million children. 2001 Beacon Award Winners Community Relations Community Relations; Full Campaign/Series; Cable System II Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign 2000; Comcast Cablevision; Atlanta, GA Comcast employees of Tallahassee lost an employee to breast cancer. In order to help deal with their grief, they wanted to make more people aware of breast cancer and the need to support awareness. They worked together to help sponsor three major events regarding breast cancer awareness. These events reached more than 80,000 people in the Tallahassee area and generated $50,000 in revenue. Because of the success of the campaign, Comcast is developing a year-long campaign focusing on personal testimonials from victims of breast cancer that will be aired as :30 PSAs. For more information, contact: Patricia Collins Division Manager Government Affairs Comcast Cablevision 360 Interstate N. Pkwy. #600 Atlanta, GA 30339 678-385-5138 (phone) Community Relations; Full Campaign/Series; Cable System III Adult Literacy Campaign; Time Warner Communications; Columbus, OH Time Warner Columbus Division’s Annual Adult Literacy Campaign raises funds to support literacy efforts by donating cable installation fees collected during the month of August to local literacy agencies. In April 2000, the Columbus Division was joined by its Literacy Spokesperson, NFL star Eddie George, to announce the results of its 1999 campaign at a special event. The announcement and fundraising effort was such a success, the Columbus Division expanded the August 2000 campaign to new communities it began to serve in late 1999, and the three additional Time Warner Ohio Divisions also launched the effort. The August 2000 campaign was the most successful to date. The Columbus Division broke last year’s fundraising effort by $10,000, raising $40,000 for local literacy agencies, and approximately $75,000 was raised by all four divisions to benefit agencies across the state. For more information, contact: Judy Barbao Manager, Public Affairs Time Warner Communications 1600 Watermark Drive 3rd Floor Columbus, OH 43215 614-481-5389 (phone) Community Relations; Full Campaign/Series; Cable System IV A Welcome Home; Cox Communications - Las Vegas; Las Vegas, NV The A Welcome Home program was created to increase awareness about the need for adoptive families in Southern Nevada -- and -- to help find homes for the special-needs children that are waiting to be adopted. These ―waiting‖ children are harder to place in adoptive homes due to complicating issues. Some have physical or mental challenges, or they’re over the age of 2 years, or they’re part of a sibling group – and don’t want to be separated from their brothers/sisters. The A Welcome Home program highlights these children with :30 and :60 video vignettes. The vignettes direct people to AccessLasVegas.com for detailed biographies about each child. To date, many of the children have entered the adoption process. By creating the A Welcome Home program, Cox Communications has brought hope to the children that were once considered ―invisible.‖ For more information, contact: Stephanie Stallworth Manager, Public Affairs Cox Communications - Las Vegas 121 S. Martin Luther King Blvd. Las Vegas, NV 89107 702-384-8084 ext. 345 (phone) Community Relations; Full Campaign/Series; Cable Network The Big Help; Nickelodeon; New York, NY The "Big Help" is Nickelodeon's year-round public service campaign designed to motivate, inform and inspire volunteerism among kids by providing ideas, resources and a national network of participating organizations to help support local projects. Every year Nickelodeon picks 10 cities across the country - the "Lucky 10" - where the network works extensively with the local cable system to create and strengthen their relationships with local officials, schools, and community organizations. This year, in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, Charter Communications and Nickelodeon worked with the city's planning department to create a project that had been on the city's agenda for 10 years - a 100-tree arboretum. In Charlotte, North Carolina, Time Warner and Nickelodeon created a schoolyard habitat that is being designated as an official wildlife habitat by the National Wildlife Federation. For more information, contact: Jean Margaret Smith Vice President, Public Affairs & Administration Nickelodeon 1515 Broadway New York, NY 10036 212-258-7564 (phone) Community Relations; Full Campaign/Special Event; Cable System I MediaOne Volunteer Telethon; AT&T Broadband; Elyria, OH MediaOne and Lorain County’s first ever – volunteer telethon was aired live on June 7, 2000, from 7-10 p.m. It wasn’t money that callers were asked to donate but volunteer hours to the Volunteer Action Center of Greater Lorain County for use at area non-profit agencies and schools. Viewers were educated that their help was needed to build a caring community. MediaOne was proud to obtain volunteer recruiters and spread the word that volunteer training was needed for Ohio Reads, Family Matters and AmeriCorps. A strong message was given to the younger generation by VOLUNTEENS and MediaOne Cub Reporters that A Day of Caring, Winter Festival, and The Chocolate Festival needed their help. Individuals and corporate volunteers donated a total of 4,200 hours. For more information, contact: Joan Lowry Corporate Affairs Manager AT&T Broadband 576 Ternes Avenue Elyria, OH 44035 440-365-2556 ext.630 (phone) Community Relations; Full Campaign/Special Event; Cable System II KDCI Election 2000 Live Coverage and Reception; Daniels Cablevision; Carlsbad, CA Daniels Cablevision wanted to be the No. 1 source for coverage of local elections. It produced and aired 14 hours of programming on local elections, including interviews with more than 70 candidates. On Election Night 200 VIPs, including many elected officials, attended the reception at the cable system office and participated in the Election Coverage. The 3-hour production featured results, more than 40 interviews, and background information on a wide variety of races. Local media had to attend the event to talk to the local candidates. One San Diego broadcaster did live cut-ins from the cable system, as did a local radio station. The reception allowed Daniels to provide exclusive election coverage for our customers, establish relationships with local elected officials, and brand our existing news programming. For more information, contact: Philip J. Urbina Community & Governmental Relations Manager Daniels Cablevision 5720 El Camino Real Carlsbad, CA 92008 760438-7741 (phone) Community Relations; Full Campaign/Special Event; Cable System IV Cox Technology Centers; Cox Communications - Hampton Roads; Norfolk, VA To address the digital divide facing youth, Cox Communications Hampton Roads partnered with area Boys and Girls Clubs to create Cox Technology Centers. Located in the clubs, the centers provide computers and Internet access free of charge. To assure the continued success and funding of these centers, Cox Hampton Roads became the presenting sponsor for both the Peninsula Boys and Girls Clubs Annual Golf Tournament and the BUY.COM Virginia Beach Open. In addition, through a $10,000 donation to the Tiger Woods Golf Foundation, Cox helped make it possible for children from the Boys and Girls Club of South Hampton Roads to participate in the Tiger Woods golf clinic. Cox was also granted a sixty-minute interview with Tiger, which aired exclusively on Cox Hampton Roads local origination channel 11. For more information, contact: Irvine B. Hill Vice President of Public Affairs and Community Programming Cox Communications - Hampton Roads 4585 Village Ave Norfolk, VA 23502 757-222-6577 (phone) Community Relations; Full Campaign/Special Event; Cable Network MTV Choose or Lose 2000: Cox Communications & MTV GEN Y/Why Vote; MTV; New York, NY MTV partnered with Cox Communications on an exclusive Choose or Lose promotion called the "Cox Communications & MTV Gen Y/Why Vote? Use Your Vote or Lose Your Voice" Essay Contest. The contest asked young voters, specifically in Cox markets to focus on the importance of voting and the reasons why they should register and go to the polls and cast their vote in November 2000. The winners and their guests won all expense paid trips to either the Republic or Democratic Convention, and the Grand Prize winner would attend both. Twelve Cox Communications systems across the country participated in the promotion and six local winners were selected. Each system held voter registration drives in their markets to help promote the contest. Cox received several press hits and generated over $81,000 in local ad sales revenue. The promotion helped raise awareness of Cox's leadership efforts and of their support of spreading the word to America's youth on the importance of voting. For more information, contact: Melissa Phillips Manager Affiliate Marketing MTV 1515 Broadway 24th Floor New York, NY 10036 212-846-7957 (phone) Community Relations; Video Promotion or PSA/Series; Cable Network Our Lifetime Commitment: Lifetime Movies . . . Making a Difference; Lifetime Television; New York, NY After a Lifetime movie dealing with a serious issue, viewers often write, call and e-mail requesting further information. These issues, including violence against women, child abuse and women’s health concerns are meaningful to Lifetime’s viewers and the women’s advocacy community at-large. Lifetime used its strong relationships with hundreds of non-profit organizations to implement Lifetime Movies…Making a Difference, a campaign to provide expanded resources for viewers on a variety of topics. Lifetime creates and airs tags and public service announcements (PSAs) after movies that deal with important issues to connect viewers with a variety of advocacy organizations through toll-free hotlines and links on www.lifetimetv.com. Thousands have taken advantage of this chance to learn more and take action. For more information, contact: Jackie Kane Manager, Public Affairs Lifetime Television 309 West 49th Street New York, NY 10019 212-424-7119 (phone) Community Relations; Video Promotion or PSA/Special Event; Cable System II Daffodil Days 2000; AT&T Broadband; Spokane, WA In February 2000, AT&T Broadband of Spokane, Washington partnered with the American Cancer Society for a fundraising campaign called ―Daffodil Days.‖ This event, was a great opportunity to bring some bright color and good cheer to the community after a long, gray winter. Area businesses participated in purchasing bouquets of daffodils and used them to reward their employees and/or donate them to local charities. Spokane employees purchased over $800 of daffodil bouquets and the system matched them with a $500 donation. The bouquets purchased by the company were distributed at an area nursing home. The campaign was a huge success, resulting in a 69% increase in donations over dollars raised in 1999. For more information, contact: Diane Cortez Production Manager AT&T Broadband 1717 E. Buckeye Spokane, WA 99207 509-484-4931 (phone) Community Relations; Local Programming/Series; Cable System II PictureBook PlayLand; AT&T Broadband; San Rafael, CA PictureBook PlayLand was created by AT&T Broadband in partnership with The History Channel to promote reading and literacy. Each half-hour segment features three to four picture books and a sing-along. Programs are often centered on a major theme such as pets, friendship, sharing, and family. The series allowed AT&T Broadband to connect schools, local and state government, and our Cable in the Classroom programmer to enhance our image in the community. For more information, contact: Shirley Gulbransen Area Director AT&T Broadband 1111 Anderson Drive San Rafael, CA 94901 415-459-5333 (phone) Community Relations; Local Programming/Special Event; Cable System III Comcast Newsmakers of the Year Awards; Comcast Cablevision of Philadelphia; Philadelphia, PA Comcast Newsmakers of the Year Awards, in only its second year, has become an anticipated event on Philadelphia's community and political calendar. This year’s event held Tuesday, October 3, 2000, brought together a diverse group of individuals, representing distinguished community leaders and elected officials in Philadelphia. This gala event awarded eleven outstanding Philadelphians and their charity of choice along with showcasing local talent of community-based organizations. Produced by CN8, The Comcast Network and Comcast Cablevision of Philadelphia, the program was taped in front of a live audience and broadcast on CN8 throughout the month of October. For more information, contact: Sharon Franklin Community Relations Manager Comcast Cablevision of Philadelphia 11400 Northeast Avenue Philadelphia, PA 19116 215-961-4438 (phone) Community Relations; Local Programming/Special Event; Cable System IV 10th Annual Senior Star Talent Show; Time Warner Communications - Pinellas; Clearwater, FL In its 10th consecutive year, the Senior Star Talent Show has proven the value of positive public relations among the senior and retirement community in Pinellas County, Florida. Time Warner Communications, Pinellas County Region, serves approximately 300,000 customers and over half are over sixty years of age. In addition, approximately 18,000 seniors choose Pinellas County as their winter home. On April 5, 2000, at Ruth Eckerd Hall in Clearwater Florida, the 10th Annual Senior Star Talent Show was held. Although there was a concern about the sale of $3.00 tickets to an audience that saw the show "free" for the last nine years, the Hall was packed. At the conclusion of the show, Neighborly Senior Services (beneficiary of the proceeds) received $5,772.00 from Time Warner Communications. For more information, contact: Wanda Hayes-Riddick Community Relations Manager Time Warner Communications - Pinellas 2530 Drew Street Clearwater, FL 33765 727-431-8508 (phone) Community Relations; Print Materials; Cable Network The Big Help Kids Kit; Nickelodeon; New York, NY "The Big Help" celebrates its seventh year as Nickelodeon's public service, grassroots campaign designed to encourage and empower kids to volunteer in their communities. The network has created extensive materials such as kits, posters, badges, resource guides, etc. for cable systems to choose from and customize for their local Big Help project. There are also components available for teachers, parents, community organizations and kids. And of course, the materials reflect the nature of Nickelodeon - fun, upbeat, informative and colorful. For more information, contact: Jean Margaret Smith Vice President, Public Affairs & Administration Nickelodeon 1515 Broadway New York, NY 10036 212-258-7564 (phone) Community Relations; Web Site; Cable System II Berks County News Web Site; AT&T Broadband; Wyomissing, PA AT&T Broadband, Reading, Pa., has produced a live, nightly newscast since 1995. In an effort to have a more direct link with viewers and in response to numerous viewer requests, the company created a web site for Berks County News featuring video streaming of the newscast, special segments, contests, viewer feedback and complete video footage of press conferences and other news events. The web site – www.berkscountynews.com – launched October 30, 2000. In the first two days of operation, viewers e-mailed Berks County News to identify a bank robber shown on the newscast and to report the name of a suspect in a stabbing. Both have since been charged by police. Within the first few weeks of operation, the site was averaging 700 hits per day. For more information, contact: C. Elizabeth Sterner Area Director, Communications AT&T Broadband 875 Berkshire Blvd., Suite 102 Wyomissing, PA 19610 610-376-6181 (phone) Community Relations; Web Site; Cable System III Close Up on the Arena District; Time Warner Communications; Columbus, OH "Close Up on the Arena District" by Time Warner Road Runner effectively used broadband multimedia to deliver a sneak peak into the fervor surrounding both the arrival of Columbus' NHL expansion team and the grand opening of their home ice, Nationwide Arena. A balanced combination of video, print copy and related Web links highlighted the district's mix-use emphasis, featuring pertinent information on the arena, its neighboring businesses and nightlife venues. The project received prominent media coverage and significant customer use. For more information, contact: Mary Jo Green Vice President, Public Affairs Time Warner Communications 1266 Dublin Road Columbus, OH 43215 614-481-5308 (phone) Community Relations; Web Site; Cable Network Our Lifetime Commitment: Strong Medicine - Strong Advice on Women's Health; Lifetime Television; New York, NY Lifetime Television’s series ―Strong Medicine‖ is a model of how on-air programming and issue advocacy can be successfully melded into a single public affairs effort. This critically-acclaimed drama follows two very different women doctors as they run a women’s medical clinic; what emerges is a sensitive exploration of questions regarding women’s health. Strong Medicine: Strong Advice on Women’s Health online chats uses the critical topics addressed on the series as a launch pad for online chats featuring leading medical specialists following each ―Strong Medicine‖ episode. Thousands of viewers participate in Strong Medicine: Strong Advice on Women’s Health chats in a live and interactive forum to ask questions and share health concerns. For more information, contact: Jackie Kane Manager, Public Affairs Lifetime Television 309 West 49th Street New York, NY 10019 212-424-7119 (phone) Customer Relations Customer Relations; Full Campaign/Series; Cable System II Passport To Black History; Comcast Cable Communications, Inc.; Detroit, MI For a second year, Comcast Cablevision of Detroit helped Detroiters celebrate Black History Month through its ―Passport to Black History Month.‖ As part of the campaign, Comcast produced and received sponsorships for infomercials that highlighted African Americans who have made a special contribution to Detroit history. In addition, in partnership with various network affiliates, Comcast hosted four screenings; each targeted to specific audiences. ―Passport‖ booklets, which highlighted the month’s activities, were printed and distributed. The campaign was a success on all fronts! All of the movie screenings were filled to capacity, Comcast ran out of 20,000 Passport booklets, and ad sales made $90,000 in sponsorships. Also, in addition to many thank you letters from customers, elected officials and community organizations, Comcast has already received many inquiries about next year’s activities. For more information, contact: Pamela Dover Director of Community Relations Comcast Cable Communications, Inc. 12775 Lyndon Avenue Detroit, MI 48227 313-934-2600 (phone) Customer Relations; Full Campaign/Special Event; Cable System II Nickelodeon Big Help in Detroit; Comcast Cable Communications, Inc.; Detroit, MI In collaboration with Nickelodeon, the City of Detroit and Detroit Parks and Recreation, Comcast in Detroit coordinated a Big Help project—the restoration of the Blue Heron Lagoon at the city’s 980-acre island, Belle Isle. Five small projects were created to reach this Big Help objective. These included building birdhouses and cleaning up the marshland. After the project, the kids were treated to a special celebration that included Nickelodeon’s Big Helpmobile and special appearances by Nickelodeon stars. Parks and Recreation estimated that 2000 volunteers would show up for a general cleanup along with the 100 kids for the five projects. However, despite the rain, over 3,000 kids showed up! For more information, contact: Pamela Dover Director of Community Relations Comcast Cable Communications, Inc. 12775 Lyndon Avenue Detroit, MI 48227 313-934-2600 (phone) Education Education; Full Campaign/Series; Cable System IV Cable Communications 2000 at Dixie Hollins High School; Time Warner Communications Pinellas Region; Clearwater, FL In January 2000, Time Warner Communications – Pinellas Region, launched a new partnership with Pinellas County Schools Vocational Education Department that brought Time Warner employees into the classroom to teach a comprehensive course on the business of cable TV. Hundreds of hours of planning and preparation by Time Warner and School District personnel culminated in a semester-long program incorporating all aspects of the cable industry, including the regional news network Bay News 9 and Road Runner High Speed On-Line service. A vocational program, focused on engineering, that prepares a motivated student for an entry-level position in the cable industry, is proving to be a benefit to the students and Time Warner Communications, one of the largest employers in Pinellas County. For more information, contact: Amy Van Dell Manager, Educational Development Time Warner Communications - Pinellas Region 2530 Drew Street Clearwater, FL 33765 727-431-8513 (phone) Education; Full Campaign/Series; MSO The Power To Learn Education Initiative; Cablevision Systems Corporation; Bethpage, NY The Power To Learn is Cablevision's educational initiative, designed to enable teachers, students and parents to leverage the power of the Internet in a commercial-free environment. Cablevision developed Power To Learn specifically for New York metropolitan area communities, and, as part of the initiative, offers high-speed Internet access to schools and libraries, provides powertolearn.com, an online learning community, and trains teachers to integrate the Internet into their classrooms. 750 schools and libraries will be connected to and using The Power To Learn at the end of calendar year 2000. As an active partner in our schools, The Power To Learn provides children the best possible chance to succeed in a new digital century. For more information, contact: Lee E. Whitmore Vice President of Education Cablevision Systems Corporation 1111 Stewart Avenue Bethpage, NY 11714 516-393-3698 (phone) Education; Full Campaign/Series; Cable Network VH1 Save the Music - Education; VH1; New York, NY VH1 Save The Music education campaign is dedicated to improving the quality of education in America's schools by restoring music programs in cities across the country and raising awareness of music participation for America's Youth. The campaign consisted of school/market research with members of local education boards in their local communities, national marketing events and musical instrument fulfillment through cable affiliate market activity. VH1, in partnership with its cable affiliates, participated in national fundraising, public awareness and public advocacy events on behalf of the Foundation. During 2000, VH1 Save The Music Foundation restored 214 instrumental music education programs in 40 cities and installed $5,000,000 worth of musical instruments in public schools across the country. For more information, contact: Bob Morrison Vice President, Public Affairs VH1 1515 Broadway 20th Floor New York, NY 10036 212-846-7627 (phone) Education; Full Campaign/Series; New Technology Pr WebSmart Kids; High Speed Access Corp.; Littleton, CO High Speed Access Corp. worked with Cable in the Classroom and four other partners to create WebSmart Kids, an educational initiative to help parents and educators teach kids to use media literacy skills on the Internet. Over the past 11 months, we have received a strong response from both the education and cable industries that this is just the type of positive initiative they’ve been looking for to expand the scope of media literacy into the realm of the Internet. Based on this positive response, HSA is planning to expand WebSmart Kids with enhancements to the sites and more interactive learning tools. In addition, we plan to develop a targeted affiliate relations program, whereby our cable partners can promote WebSmart Kids as part of their local community relations program. For more information, contact: Amy Sperber Director of Public Affairs High Speed Access Corp. 10901 W. Toller Drive Littleton, CO 80127 720-922-2822 (phone) Education; Full Campaign/Special Event; Cable System II Prevention Campaign Wallops Drugs and Violence; AT&T Broadband; Riverdale, UT The Weber County and Schools drug and violence prevention program, The Cammi Awards, was in trouble. Founded as a Public Service Announcement creation competition, it was floundering, because students were not given instruction, equipment, help and encouragement to create their own videos. The County and School District approached AT&T Broadband asking for help. AT&T Broadband saved the Cammi Awards, using innovation to expand it into a highprofile, exhilarating, continuous education campaign that absolutely changes students' lives. Now students across the state have more awareness of the importance of avoiding drugs and violence. AT&T changed the event from "amateur hour" to a highly professional, highly charged, high visibility education campaign. For more information, contact: Barb Shelley Regional Communications Director AT&T Broadband 642 West 400 South Riverdale, UT 84042 801-234-6578 (phone) Education; Full Campaign/Special Event; Cable System III My Window; Time Warner Communications; Garden Grove, CA Time Warner Communications, in partnership with cable programmers, educational organizations, and businesses, celebrated the spirit of community by sponsoring a unique student photo contest. The campaign highlighted burgeoning technology and the Internet by giving the contest a considerable online presence and offering computers to both the winning students and their schools. Wrapping educational resources for teachers into a fun and exciting learning experience for students increased awareness of the commercial-free educational resources available through Time Warner and helped make the campaign a success. Utilizing ongoing system branding made the campaign recognizable, enhanced the image of Time Warner's value in the community and helped to promote the company’s commitment to local schools. For more information, contact: Gail Toth Educational Outreach Coordinator Time Warner Communications 7441 Chapman Avenue Garden Grove, CA 92841 714-903-4170 (phone) Education; Full Campaign/Special Event; Cable System IV Time Warner Cable's Road Runner Club; Time Warner Cable - Milwaukee; Milwaukee, WI Time Warner Cable - Milwaukee joined forces with PowerUp, the Boys and Girls Clubs, YMCA, the Milwaukee Urban League and schools to launch the first of its kind in the countryTime Warner Road Runner Club! The program is designed to totally envelop students with opportunities to expand their horizons, achieve greater academic success, improve self-esteem and successfully prepare Middle and High school students to effectively meet the challenges of the digital age. Each facility has a designated Road Runner Club site with an assigned adult Road Runner Club mentor. Time Warner Cable employees also serve as mentors to the members. Club members assist other students in expanding their horizons through computer technology, and in so doing will ―give back‖ to their community’s future. For more information, contact: Bev Greenberg Vice President of Community and Government Relations Time Warner Cable - Milwaukee 1610 North 2nd Street Milwaukee, WI 53212 414-277-4190 (phone) Education; Full Campaign/Special Event; Cable Network The Crossing; A&E Network; New York, NY The Crossing is A&E Network's educational outreach initiative designed to bring awareness to George Washington's legendary crossing of the Delaware during the American Revolution. This extensive initiative reached 25,000 middle schools around the country and offered participants a truly unique learning experience. Educational materials linked to National Standards and two unique student contests helped to make The Crossing a fun and interactive project. For more information, contact: Libby O'Connell Vice President, Community Marketing A&E Network 235 East 45th Street New York, NY 10017 212-210-1402 (phone) Education; Video Promotion or PSA/Special Event; Cable System II Clinton Mitten Drive; Time Warner Cable - Nebraska Division; Lincoln, NE It’s difficult for children to learn when they’re hands are cold and their feet are wet. That’s why each holiday season the employees at the Time Warner Cable Nebraska Division donate money to purchase warm winter clothing for the kids at Clinton Elementary. The system has done the Clinton Mitten Drive for the past six years, gaining popularity among both employees and the staff and students at Clinton Elementary. This year, Time Warner Cable produced a 30-second PSA about the project to emphasize their commitment to education and their community. The PSA aired throughout the holiday season on 24 cable networks and featured the children singing carols to Time Warner Cable employees. For more information, contact: Ann Shrewsbury Public Affairs Manager Time Warner Cable - Nebraska Division 5400 South 16th Street Lincoln, NE 68512 402-421-0378 (phone) Education; Local Programming/Series; Cable System II Homework Hotline; Comcast Cable Communications, Inc.; Detroit, MI With single-parent homes and dual-income homes, parents aren’t always available to assist their children with homework. In addition, low-test scores, among other concerns, have been plaguing Detroit Public School elementary students. To further its commitment to education, Comcast launched ―Homework Hotline,‖ a live television show which assists students with their homework. The one-hour program airs Tuesdays and Thursdays on Comcast Channel 6 and features a local teacher who takes calls from students. ―Homework Hotline‖ has become extremely popular in Detroit! Comcast receives an average of 100 calls per show and Comcast’s programming manager has received numerous requests from community businesses to sponsor the show. Starting in January 2001, Comcast has plans to expand the program to five days a week. For more information, contact: Pamela Dover Director of Community Relations Comcast Cable Communications, Inc. 12775 Lyndon Avenue Detroit, MI 48227 313-934-2600 (phone) Education; Local Programming/Series; Cable System IV Time Warner Cable's Kidz Biz; Time Warner Cable - Milwaukee; Milwaukee, WI Time Warner’s Kidz Biz is a 28-minute news program that is researched, written, produced, and performed by middle school students and aired on cable during prime time. The Kidz Biz experience enlightens students and teachers about the media. It arms the students with the critical thinking skills that will make them smart consumers of the news and helps to mitigate the influence of violence in the media. Ultimately, students learn the management techniques such as cooperation, teamwork, leadership, time management, and negotiation. For more information, contact: Bev Greenberg Vice President of Community and Government Relations Time Warner Cable - Milwaukee 1610 North 2nd Street Milwaukee, WI 53212 414-277-4190 (phone) Education; Local Programming/Series; Cable Network MTV Choose or Lose 2000: Cable In The Classroom; MTV; New York, NY This year, MTV’s Community of the Future series presented substantive, thought-provoking programming from MTV’s Choose or Lose 2000 campaign, which engages, informs and empowers young people in the political process and registers them to vote. MTV produced materials for two Cable in the Classroom efforts supporting our Choose or Lose 2000 pro-social campaign: “Where Were You at 22?” and “MTV Choose or Lose 2000: Why Care?” Materials included lesson plans, programming calendar with show descriptions, and a Community of the Future fact sheet. Affiliates and educators benefit from MTV Cable in the Classroom initiatives because they are able to use MTV’s unique relationship with young adults to help teachers reach young people and to support our affiliates’ community education efforts. For more information, contact: Melissa Phillips Manager Affiliate Marketing MTV 1515 Broadway 24th Floor New York, NY 10036 212-846-7957 (phone) Education; Local Programming/Special Event; Cable System I Cultural Diversity: Native American Tradition; AT&T Broadband; Elyria, OH AT&T Broadband, formerly MediaOne, West of Cleveland, located in Elyria, Ohio, sponsored, in cooperation with the Beck Center for the Arts, a Cultural Diversity: Native American Tradition program at Lear North Elementary School in North Ridgeville, Ohio. Goals of the program were to develop a cultural understanding of the Native Americans and to appreciate their contributions and spiritual triumph in the history of the United States. Native Americans presented music, dance, folklore and customs to the children. Prior to the day's program, children made and decorated the school with cornhusk dolls, totem poles, murals and masks. AT&T Broadband taped the day's events. The entire show was cablecast on Channel 32 and a copy given to each school in our eleven communities. For more information, contact: Joan Lowry Corporate Affairs Manager AT&T Broadband 576 Ternes Avenue Elyria, OH 44035 440-365-2556 ext.630 (phone) Education; Local Programming/Special Event; Cable System III Get Your Vote On; Cox Communications; New Orleans, LA For students that are not old enough to vote, the Presidential Election can be interesting to observe but frustrating to not have their voices or opinions heard. Cox and CNN partnered to produce a live sixty-minute program titled Get Your Vote On immediately following the 1st presidential debate. This unique program featured a live studio audience of 80 students from throughout the greater New Orleans area that discussed and assessed the candidates on a range of issues. Viewers participated online through polls, surveys, real-time chat rooms, e-mail questions and via calling into the program. The entire program utilized the components of voice, video and data showcasing all elements of the cable industry in an hour-long, multi-media experience for students and viewers. For more information, contact: Brad Grundmeyer Manager of Education & Community Services Cox Communications 338 Edwards Avenue New Orleans, LA 70123 504-304-7345 (phone) Education; Local Programming/Special Event; Cable System IV Time Warner Cable's Hang Tough Video Contest; Time Warner Cable - Milwaukee; Milwaukee, WI The Time Warner Cable Hang Tough Video Contest allows over 2,000 middle school students every year, to communicate with their peers by producing their own :30 second spots or public service announcements. These spots air on 23 cable networks weekly. Students write, act, and direct, creating a great overall learning opportunity that allows students to use cable television as a positive medium to stop violence and drug abuse. For more information, contact: Bev Greenberg Vice President of Community and Government Relations Time Warner Cable - Milwaukee 1610 North 2nd Street Milwaukee, WI 53212 414-277-4190 (phone) Education; Print Materials; Cable Network Your Choice. Your Voice.; Turner Learning, Inc.; Atlanta, GA CNN’s Your Choice. Your Voice. was a six-week, educational program (http://www.yourchoiceyourvoice.com) designed to teach students about the electoral process. All curriculum materials designed by Turner Learning are available online and feature six lesson plans. Through these lesson plans, students learned who is eligible to vote. They researched issues such as gun control and education and then determined where candidates stand on those issues. Once students understood what candidates believe, they could watch debates and election media coverage with a critical eye. Students also analyzed polls and realized what role polls play in voters’ minds. Finally, students learned about the Electoral College. The culminating activity was a mock election held in each participating school. Through Your Choice. Your Voice., more than 25,000 students learned about the electoral process. For more information, contact: Heather Higgins Public Relations Assistant Turner Learning, Inc. One CNN Center, 12 Floor North Tower Atlanta, GA 30303 404-827-5220 (phone) Education; Web Site; Cable System IV The Great Debate and Beyond; AT&T Broadband - Greater Chicago Market; Deerfield, IL Honoring the 40th Anniversary of the first televised Presidential Debate, AT&T Broadband partnered with The Museum of Broadcast Communications to celebrate a historic event. AT&T Broadband and MBC sponsored a seminar/reception with surviving participants of the first televised debate between Richard M. Nixon and John F. Kennedy. Distinguished participants of the panel discussion included Don Hewitt, Director of the first debate, Herbert G. Klein, Media Advisor to Vice President Richard Nixon, Howard K. Smith, legendary news correspondent, Theodore C. Sorensen, policy advisor, legal counsel, and speech writer to Senator and President John F. Kennedy, and Sander Vanocur, journalist from the first debate. AT&T Broadband and MBC also sponsored and hosted the ―Great Debates and Beyond: The History of Televised Presidential Debates‖ web site (http://www.att.com/learningnetwork). This interactive web site features videos of Presidential Debates from 1960-1996, interviews with political experts, photo gallery of the debates, teacher resources, and bibliographic links. For more information, contact: Patricia Andrews-Keenan Executive Director of Communication AT&T Broadband - Greater Chicago Market 111 Pfingster Road, Suite 400 Deerfield, IL 60015 847-480-3303 (phone) Education; Web Site; MSO The Power To Learn Online Learning Community; Cablevision Systems Corporation; Bethpage, NY Powertolearn.com is an online community designed to meet the unique educational needs of K12 teachers, students and parents. Through monthly themes, annotated web resources, dynamic content, chats with experts and much more, powertolearn.com is a perfect example of how the Internet can be used to enhance learning. As teachers confront the challenge of integrating technology into the classroom, students pursue their studies and parents seek to become more involved in the education of their children, powertolearn.com is the place to be for learning in this new digital century. For more information, contact: Lee E. Whitmore Vice President of Education Cablevision Systems Corporation 1111 Stewart Avenue Bethpage, NY 11714 516-393-3698 (phone) Education; Web Site; Hardware/Software/New Tech WebSmart Kids Website; High Speed Access Corp.; Littleton, CO High Speed Access Corp. worked with Cable in the Classroom and four other partners to create WebSmart Kids, an educational initiative to help parents and educators teach kids to use media literacy skills on the Internet. Over the past 11 months, we have received a strong response from both the education and cable industries that this is just the type of positive initiative they’ve been looking for to expand the scope of media literacy into the realm of the Internet. Based on this positive response, HSA is planning to expand WebSmart Kids with enhancements to the sites and more interactive learning tools. In addition, we plan to develop a targeted affiliate relations program, whereby our cable partners can promote WebSmart Kids as part of their local community relations program. For more information, contact: Amy Sperber Director of Public Affairs High Speed Access Corp. 10901 W. Toller Drive Littleton, CO 80127 720-922-2822 (phone) Employee Relations Employee Relations; Full Campaign/Series; Cable System IV The Tale of The Michigan Blizzard; Charter Communications; Grand Rapids, MI Charter Communications created a new region in Michigan at the beginning of 2000. Originally created from systems acquired by Avalon Cable, Fanch Communications, and Falcon Cable, the region incorporated systems purchased from Bresnan Communications and Cablevision. The normal circumstances associated with system acquisition became exaggerated given the scope and scale of the integration effort - five previous owners totaling 1200 employees. The Michigan Region created the concept of an "expansion team" to improve operational efficiency and teamwork - and the "Michigan Blizzard" became one of Charter Communications' best regions. For more information, contact: Tim Ransberger Vice President, Government Relations, Michigan Region Charter Communications 1035 Spaulding Ave, S.E. Grand Rapids, MI 49546 616-464-1839 (phone) Employee Relations; Full Campaign/Series; MSO Dare to Dream 2000; Cox Communications, Inc.; Atlanta, GA In January 2000, planning began for a new incentive program called Dare to Dream that would provide some standardization to incentive tools used by local system management. The objective was to facilitate the company-wide shift toward a sales-focused culture by providing programs to recognize and reward performance excellence and to support efforts to exceed 1 million RGUs in the year 2000. The program rolled out in July. Across the country, employees were rewarded for reaching their RGU sales goals and other company goals with Flooz gift dollars. From the kick-off, employees have shown an enormous amount of interest in making and meeting their goals for the year. At press time, the company is at 77 percent of the entire goal. Almost half of our systems have exceeded, met or are very close to reaching their goals. We’ve received an average of 25 electronic nominations a day recognizing non-sales employees who have excelled at contributing to RGU growth in their roles. This program was so successful in motivating our employees that we have plans to continue it next year as well. For more information, contact: Erin Tallis Manager of Public Relations Cox Communications, Inc. 1400 Lake Hern Drive Atlanta, GA 30319 404-843-5854 (phone) Employee Relations; Full Campaign/Special Event; MSO A Whole New Ball Game; AT&T Broadband; Englewood, CO In the wake of its acquisition of MediaOne, AT&T Broadband created a morale-boosting employee event for its newly consolidated headquarters staff in Denver. Objectives included helping all employees feel part of the new Broadband family, promoting visibility of senior executives, and branding Denver as ―The Broadband Capital.‖ Hosted at Coors Field, home of Major League Baseball’s Colorado Rockies, the event featured live entertainment, games, prize give-aways and spirited remarks by senior leaders of AT&T. More than 7,000 people – employees and their families – attended the festive event, featuring the theme, ―A Whole New Ball Game.‖ More than 20 programming and vendor partners provided entertainment and prizes. A post-event survey of attendees showed that more than three-quarters of respondents gave the party high marks and said it achieved its goals. For more information, contact: Robert C. Stoddard Sr. Vice President - Public Relations AT&T Broadband 188 Inverness Drive West Englewood, CO 80112 303-858-5888 (phone) Employee Relations; Print Materials; Cable System III Connections; AT&T Broadband; Jacksonville, FL To address a critical need to share information about company goals, strategy, results and key initiatives with a geographically and demographically diverse employee audience, the Jacksonville Florida cable system launched a weekly newsletter in January 1999. Called Connections to represent how our company connects our products to our customers and how the newsletter would connect the employees of various departments to each other, it unified the company and quickly gained readership. To meet our readers' needs, we introduced new features such as "@Work" (employee profiles) and "Kudos" (highlighting employees who demonstrated outstanding effort or excellence in customer service). The newsletter even changed its graphic look and tagline - from "The News and Information Source for Employees of MediaOne Jacksonville" to "Your Link to the Business" in a constant effort to improve. For more information, contact: Gena Jerozal Manager, Employee Communications AT&T Broadband 5934 Richard Street Jacksonville, FL 32216 904-619-2427 (phone) Employee Relations; Print Materials; MSO The Home Page Newsletter; Cablevision System Corp.; Bethpage, NY During the past three years, Cablevision has expanded to include employees from Radio City Rockettes and vendors at Madison Square Garden to Clearview Cinema theater managers and sales associates at THE WIZ. To help its diverse groups of employees better understand Company strategy, business initiatives and the industry, Cablevision created The Home Page, a bi-monthly publication that connects Cablevision’s employees to Company news, initiatives and employee information. Using The Home Page, the Company can more effectively provide employees with the thinking behind the company’s business decisions, highlight the achievements of each business under the Cablevision umbrella and provide news about the communications and entertainment industries. For more information, contact: Cindi Guthrie Director, Internal Communications Cablevision System Corp. 1111 Stewart Avenue Bethpage, NY 11714 516-803-3047 (phone) Employee Relations; Print Materials; Other Rainbow Media Holdings, Inc.'s Rainbow Times; Rainbow Media Holdings, Inc.; Bethpage, NY Rainbow Media Holdings, Inc.'s Rainbow Times newsletter is completing its fourth full year in publication and is committed to providing an informative, comprehensive and entertaining piece to our 2000 plus employee population. The newsletter was re-launched in 2000 to provide employees with an enhanced resource for internal information and industry perspective. The relaunch included a fresh design, editorial enhancements with an eye towards industry trends, and increased frequency in publishing. The content of the newsletter increases awareness on key issues such as business development, new business deals, programming, technology, staff profiles, and Web site and broadband updates. The re-launch was met with positive response. The audience has conveyed opinions not only complimentary of the new look and feel, but of the increased value of the piece as a useful resource. For more information, contact: Keith Cocozza and Jennifer Grasso Director, Corporate Communications/Manager, Internal Communication Rainbow Media Holdings, Inc. 1111 Stewart Avenue Bethpage, NY 11714 516-803-5141 or 516-803-5139 (phone) Employee Relations; Web Site; Cable Network ORBIT and Turner Volunteer Day; Turner Broadcasting System, Inc.; Atlanta, GA On the morning of Saturday, September 9, 2000, 1,627 Turner employees, their families and friends joined together in Atlanta, New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles and London to launch a day of dynamic community service. More than 30 sites and non-profit organizations benefited. Over 50,000 lives were touched. Volunteers cleaned rivers, painted schools, made meals, chatted with the elderly and took kids on field trips. Turner Volunteer Day was a phenomenal success! And much of this success can be attributed to the use of ORBIT, the Turner Intranet, which facilitated the planning and organization of the event. ORBIT closed the communication gap between far-flung employees and simplified the administrative process, making Turner Volunteer Day a universally accessible and exciting experience for all. For more information, contact: Erin Gallagher Media Relations Coordinator Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. 101 Marietta Street, 15th Floor Atlanta, GA 30303 404-827-1044 (phone) Government Relations Government Relations; Full Campaign/Series; Cable System I Mock Election 2000; Cox Communications; Rolling Hills East, CA On November 2, 2000, Cox Palos Verdes held a ―Live‖ Mock Election Show and was the first to televise the results of the student conducted elections. Seven thousand students in the community joined millions across the country in voting for President of the United States. These future leaders got the opportunity to have their voices heard through the efforts of Mock Election sponsors, teachers, parents, volunteers and Cox Cable’s Government Channel. Cox is committed to on-going partnerships with schools and elected leaders to educate the community about government and the importance of getting out the vote. For more information, contact: Vipan Seth Director of Marketing and Sales Cox Communications 43 Peninsula Center Rolling Hills East, CA 90274 310-541-5020 (phone) Government Relations; Full Campaign/Series; Cable System II Operation Good Guys; Time Warner Communications; Harlingen, TX It’s all about relationships. When Time Warner Communications acquired the Rio Grande Valley cable system, relations with elected officials from the area’s 38 Franchises were non-existent at best, and in most cases very negative. With a multi-faceted strategy, we turned opinions around, resulting in voluminous praise from local leaders. More importantly, we successfully renewed 6 franchises on favorable terms, and we are confident that state and federal officials from our region understand our positions on regulatory issues facing the industry in Austin and Washington. You can’t build goodwill with a single event. You can’t overcome decades of mistrust overnight. But in a one-year span, we made considerable progress by listening to others’ perceptions, strategically choosing initiatives that change those perceptions, and relentlessly painting a picture of ourselves as Good Guys. For more information, contact: Rolando Vela Public Affairs Manager Time Warner Communications 2921 South Expressway 83 Harlingen, TX 78551 956-412-5456 (phone) Government Relations; Full Campaign/Series; Cable System III City Council Orientation; Time Warner Cable; Charlotte, NC After several years of dealing with mergers and management changes, Time Warner Cable of Charlotte realized they needed to improve their relationship with the City Council and the Mayor, which had voted unanimously to bring in a competitor. When seven of the twelve City Council members were voted out of office, Time Warner Cable saw the opportunity to ―start fresh‖ with the new members and created an orientation effort by inviting them to one-on-one meetings, where they educated them about cable issues and provided them with a manual to take home with them as future reference. Time Warner Cable now has excellent relationships with 50% of the City Council, and new members often contact them for information whenever new issues are debated or decisions are to be made concerning cable. For more information, contact: Sue Breckenridge Vice President, Public Affairs Time Warner Cable 316 E. Morehead Charlotte, NC 28202 704-378-2952 (phone) Government Relations; Full Campaign/Series; Cable System IV Planting Foundations for Better Relations; Cablevision of Long Island; Woodbury, NY As a leading telecommunications and entertainment company with its ―roots‖ on Long Island, Cablevision developed a series of beautification projects in partnership with local municipalities. Specific sites, including unsightly traffic islands, were beautified with plantings of trees, bedding plants and flowers with seed money from Cablevision totaling $90,000. Mayors and community members played active roles in the development of their gardens and Cablevision’s name was prominently displayed at each site. The project resulted in enhanced relations with local mayors, positive coverage by local papers and cable TV and a permanent reminder of Cablevision’s beautification efforts in each of the communities it serves. For more information, contact: Joan Hendricks Area Director, Political and Community Affairs Cablevision of Long Island One Media Crossways Woodbury, NY 11797 516-393-3665 (phone) Government Relations; Full Campaign/Series; Cable Network Our Lifetime Commitment: Every Woman Counts; Lifetime Television; New York, NY Lifetime Television has a long history of supporting women and giving them a voice on the issues important in their daily lives. In January 2000, a Lifetime poll showed that less than one in ten undecided women voters thought that any presidential candidate was discussing the issues they cared about most. Lifetime recognized an important opportunity to ensure that women’s voices were heard. Through the multi-faceted, non-partisan public affairs campaign Our Lifetime Commitment: Every Woman Counts, Lifetime gave women a strong voice in the 2000 elections by acting as a conduit between women, political candidates and elected leaders. Every Woman Counts served as a catalyst between women and the candidates, creating a two-way dialogue on women’s issues, on-air, off-air and online. For more information, contact: Jackie Kane Manager, Public Affairs Lifetime Television 309 West 49th Street New York, NY 10019 212-424-7119 (phone) Government Relations; Video Promotion or PSA/Series; Cable System II Comcast Census; Comcast Cable Communications, Inc.; Detroit, MI If Census 2000 indicates that Detroit has less than one million residents, the city will lose money. Comcast in Detroit partnered with the city in its campaign to get residents to send in their census forms. Comcast produced/aired census spots featuring public officials and other prominent leaders; aired nationally produced census spots; produced/aired a six-minute loop tape; and produced two one-hour shows. In addition, Comcast marketed the census through a bill message, on-hold message, Weather Channel Crawl, and literature in customer lobbies. For more information, contact: Pamela Dover Director of Community Relations Comcast Cable Communications, Inc. 12775 Lyndon Avenue Detroit, MI 48227 313-934-2600 (phone) Government Relations; Local Programming/Special Event; Cable System II HOLOCAUST: "Voices from the Past"; Time Warner Cable; Palm Desert, CA Time Warner Cable Desert Cities Division L.O. department produced Holocaust: ―Voices from the Past‖ a one hour documentary telling the stories of three local Holocaust survivors. Additionally, the program highlighted the City of Palm Desert’s new Holocaust memorial created by the three local survivors featured in the program. A VIP and community premiere of the program generated positive press in print, television and radio. Additionally, Time Warner Cable was awarded special Congressional Recognition from Congresswoman, Mary Bono. This event was staged during a franchise transfer from MediaOne to Time Warner Cable. The results: Franchise transfer was approved unanimously by City of Palm Desert. Over 900 residents visited the new memorial in one night! Time Warner Cable launched an educational speaking tour program with the survivors. Further, Time Warner cable provided over 70 VHS dubs to local schools to enhance this educational program. For more information, contact: Roger Heaney Public Affairs Manager Time Warner Cable 41725 Cook Street Palm Desert, CA 92211 760-674-5371 (phone) Industry Relations Industry Relations; Full Campaign/Series; Cable Network Hispanic Outreach; Nickelodeon; New York, NY During 1999, many social activist organizations dealing with race began to set up their campaign for more diversity in media. The NAACP issued a report card on cable diversity based on 1998 data, and the industry did poorly. NAMIC (National Association of Minorities in Communications) issued a set of proposals the cable industry should take to "raise its diversity grade." Nickelodeon had always been successful at including girls, African-Americans, and Asian-Americans as main characters and positive role models in its programming, and made it an on-going effort every year to see if it could do better. It created three new programs featuring Latinos as main characters and was successful at aggressively promoting the fact that the cable industry in general, and Nickelodeon specifically, is the leader of diversity programming on television. For more information, contact: Jean Margaret Smith Vice President, Public Affairs & Administration Nickelodeon 1515 Broadway New York, NY 10036 212-258-7564 (phone) Industry Relations; Full Campaign/Special Event; Cable System IV Time Warner Cable's Road Runner Launch; Time Warner Cable - Milwaukee; Milwaukee, WI Road Runner sped into Southeastern Wisconsin with a BANG! On June 14, 2000, Time Warner Cable hosted a spectacular launch event at the Discovery World Museum. Over 350 government officials, community leaders and interested public attended the event. Road Runner and all of his Looney Tune friends were on hand to greet guests and to demonstrate on computers set up around the room, the benefits of the Road Runner High Speed On Line service as they enjoyed cocktails and refreshments in a fun and exciting atmosphere. For more information, contact: Bev Greenberg Vice President of Community and Government Relations Time Warner Cable - Milwaukee 1610 North 2nd Street Milwaukee, WI 53212 414-277-4190 (phone) Media Relations Media Relations; Full Campaign/Special Event; Cable System I WebPals Onalaska; Charter Pipeline/HAS; Littleton, CO WebPals is an educational program developed to foster learning and cultural understanding between students in America and students worldwide. Piloted by Charter Communications, Charter Pipeline and Tech TV in Onalaska, Wis., the program targets teachers and students in an attempt to cross the digital divide at an early age and to familiarize students with new technologies that they will use after graduation. Using high-speed cable modem technology and netcams, the program and connected two classrooms, one at the Onalaska Middle School and another at the S.C.E.C.G.S. Redlands School in Sydney, Australia for live, interactive classroom sessions. A highly publicized technology demo was held for the media that improved the visibility of Charter Communications, Charter Pipeline, and TechTV at the local and industry levels. For more information, contact: Heather Baniszewski Manager of Field Communications Charter Pipeline/HAS 10901 W. Toller Drive Littleton, CO 80127 720-922-2826 (phone) Media Relations; Full Campaign/Special Event; Cable System III Cablevision "Power to Learn" Scholarship - CT Media Relations Campaign; Cablevision of Connecticut, Southern Connecticut and Litchfield; Norwalk, CT When Cablevision Systems Corporation launched its new companywide ―Power to Learn‖ Scholarship Program, the company’s Connecticut systems needed to build awareness of the program’s new name and focus among teachers, parents and students. A full-scale media relations campaign was launched, consisting of three rounds of press releases specifically tailored to the audience of each newspaper serving the 26 cities and towns in the Cablevision franchise areas. The ―localization‖ of Connecticut press efforts led to the publication of 40 ―Power to Learn‖ Scholarship Program articles, resulting in an increased number of applicants and a permanent place in the system’s media outreach agenda. For more information, contact: Chris Klimek Community & Media Relations Manager Cablevision of Connecticut, Southern Connecticut and Litchfield 28 Cross Street Norwalk, CT 6851 203-750-5614 (phone) Media Relations; Print Materials; Cable Network Hispanic Outreach; Nickelodeon; New York, NY During 1999, many social activist organizations dealing with race began to step up their campaign for more diversity in the media. The NAACP issued a report card on cable diversity based on 1998 data, and the industry did poorly. NAMIC (National Association of Minorities in Communications) issued a set of proposals the cable industry should take to "raise its diversity grade." Nickelodeon had always been successful at including girls, African-Americans, and Asian-Americans as main characters and positive role models in its programming, and made it an on-going effort every year to see if it could do better. It created three new programs featuring Latinos as main characters and was successful at aggressively promoting the fact that the cable industry in general, and Nickelodeon specifically, is the leader of diversity programming on television. For more information, contact: Jean Margaret Smith Vice President, Public Affairs & Administration Nickelodeon 1515 Broadway New York, NY 10036 212-258-7564 (phone)