WASHINGTON, June 7, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Today the Ad
Council and Project Yellow Light announced the winners of the
eighth annual Project Yellow Light scholarship competition. The
contest calls for students to create a TV, radio or billboard PSA
to educate their peers about the dangers of distracted driving,
including the dangers of smartphone distracted driving. The winning
PSAs will be revealed today on a digital billboard in
New York City's Times Square, in
space donated by Clear Channel Outdoor.
Experience the interactive Multichannel News Release here:
https://www.multivu.com/players/English/8557751-ad-council-project-yellow-light-stop-texts-stop-wrecks/
Project Yellow Light was established in 2007 by the family of
Hunter Garner to honor his memory
after his death in a car crash at age 16. According to the latest
data, 3,166 people were killed in crashes involving distracted
drivers in 2017, representing 8.5% of all crash fatalities that
year.*
"We're so proud of all our winners, all those who took part in
this year's competition and everyone taking an active role to
encourage safe driving among their peers," said Julie Garner, founder of Project Yellow Light.
"Thank you to our amazing partners helping us advance our mission
to save lives."
Since 2011, Project Yellow Light has partnered with the Ad
Council to turn the winning submissions into PSAs that receive
national exposure through 1,600 TV stations nationwide, iHeartMedia
radio stations, and Clear Channel Outdoor's hundreds of printed
billboards and over 1,200 digital billboards.
This year, AT&T's It Can
Wait and Apparent Insurance and Elephant Insurance are
supporting the initiative for the first time, joining longstanding
partners CBS 2 New York, Clear Channel Outdoor (CCO), iHeartMedia,
the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the
National Organizations for Youth Safety (NOYS). Scholarships for
this year's winning students are provided with support from Aspire,
AT&T's $500 million commitment to
education and skilling, Apparent Insurance, Clear Channel Outdoor
and Elephant Insurance. A special Snapchat filter, donated by Snap,
will be available in Times Square during today's winner reveal
event.
"We're thrilled that we've received a record number of
submissions from every state across the country," said Lisa Sherman, president and CEO of the Ad
Council. "Young people are passionate about using their creativity
and voice to prevent distracted driving, and together with our
fantastic partners we can support their lifesaving messages on a
national scale."
The contest received a record-breaking 2,709 submissions this
year, a dramatic increase over last year's previous record of 1,600
entries. Entries were received from students representing all fifty
states and Washington, D.C. The
2019 scholarship prizes were awarded to the following student
honorees:
- Grand prize video – high school: Joshua Rodriguez, Dexavior Smith and Jenuo
Eneral (Miami, Fla.)
- Grand prize video – college: Marcus Marshall (Tuscaloosa, Ala.)
- Second place video – high school: Riley Kvalheim (Winter
Park, Fla.)
- Second place video – college: Jamicah Moore (Macon,
Ga.), Kade Freeman
(Savannah, Ga.) and Christian Nieva-Devela (Oahu, HI)
- Third place video – high school: Paetyn Monroe (Van
Buren, Ark.)
- Third place video – college: Holly Velie (Melbourne, Fla.)
- Billboard design – high school: Sydni Silverstone (San
Diego, Calif.)
- Billboard design – college: Alyssa Loffredo (South
Salem, N.Y.)
- Radio – high school: Nathan
Perkins (Bartlesville,
Okla.)
- Radio – college: Amanda
Baird (Great Falls,
Va.)
A host of advertising industry executives and artists lent their
time to judging the entries. This year's panel included recording
artist and songwriter Aloe Blacc; renowned filmmaker and social
activist Kweku Mandela; DDB
Worldwide CEO and Global President Wendy
Clark; Wordsworth and Booth President Tony Mennuto; Co-Chairman and Partner of Goodby
Silverstein & Partners, Jeff
Goodby; and representatives from the Martin Agency,
Pereira O'Dell and Project Yellow
Light partners the Ad Council, Apparent Insurance, AT&T's It
Can Wait, CCO, Elephant Insurance and iHeartMedia.
Apparent Insurance Managing Director, Colleen Benzin stated:
"The high volume and incredible
quality of impactful submissions received for the 2019 competition
speaks to the importance of the work being done by Project Yellow
Light and founder Julie Garner. The
winning entries will, no doubt, reach students and their peers and
motivate them to consider their safety on the road. We're proud to
partner in the fight for safe driving."
AT&T AVP of Corporate Brand Marketing, Ryan Luckey stated:
"The main goal of the It
Can Wait program is to end
distracted driving by educating all drivers about the dangers of
smartphone use behind the wheel. We applaud this new generation's
efforts to use their talents to further raise awareness around this
important issue."
CBS 2 NY Emmy-winning journalist, Alex
Denis stated:
"We all must work together to
spread the message and hold each other accountable. This is as
serious as it gets--saving lives. No one should suffer the loss of
a loved one due to the senseless act of distracting driving."
Vice President of Communications of iHeartMedia, Jessica King stated:
"For the past three years, Project
Yellow Light has delivered creative and impactful public service
messages from talented and inspiring young people. This year's
winners are no exception, and we are pleased to air 2019's winning
messages across our national network of radio stations to remind
our listeners of the dangers of texting and driving."
CEO of NOYS, April Rai
stated:
"Distracted driving is such a
critical issue for young drivers. The media assets created by youth
for Project Yellow Light resonates so strongly with their peers and
makes this program so powerful."
Through the Stop the Texts. Stop the
Wrecks. campaign, the Ad Council and NHTSA have been
working together to prevent distracted driving since 2012.
*Data Source:
https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/ViewPublication/812700
The Ad Council
The Ad Council is a nonprofit
organization with a rich history of marshaling volunteer talent
from the advertising and media industries to deliver crucial
messages to the American public. Having produced literally
thousands of PSA campaigns addressing the most pressing social
issues of the day, the Ad Council has affected, and continues to
affect, tremendous positive change by raising awareness, inspiring
action and saving lives. To learn more about the Ad Council and its
campaigns, visit AdCouncil.org, like us on Facebook, follow us
on Twitter or view our PSAs on YouTube.
AT&T
AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) is a diversified, global leader in
telecommunications, media and entertainment, and technology. It
executes in the market under four operating units. WarnerMedia's
HBO, Turner and Warner Bros. divisions are world leaders in
creating premium content, operate one of the world's largest TV and
film studios, and own a world-class library of entertainment.
AT&T Communications provides more than 100 million U.S.
consumers with entertainment and communications experiences across
TV, mobile and broadband services. Plus, it serves nearly 3 million
business customers with high-speed, highly secure connectivity and
smart solutions. AT&T Latin America provides pay-TV services
across 11 countries and territories in Latin America and the Caribbean, and is the fastest growing wireless
provider in Mexico, serving
consumers and businesses. Xandr provides marketers with innovative
and relevant advertising solutions for consumers around premium
video content and digital advertising through its AppNexus
platform.
AT&T products and services are provided or offered by
subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T
brand and not by AT&T Inc. Additional information is available
at about.att.com. © 2019 AT&T Intellectual Property. All rights
reserved. AT&T, the Globe logo and other marks are trademarks
and service marks of AT&T Intellectual Property and/or AT&T
affiliated companies. All other marks contained herein are the
property of their respective owners.
Apparent Insurance
Apparent Insurance is making the
lives of parents and families easier and safer by delivering a
better auto insurance experience. Apparent's coverage protects
families throughout life's stages with features, benefits,
discounts, and services that are tailored to the lives of all
parents. Fully backed and secured by parent company, Admiral Group,
which oversees over 6 million customers across 7 countries,
Apparent Insurance is currently available to consumers across the
state of Texas, with additional
states being announced soon.
Learn more about Apparent Insurance at
http://www.apparentinsurance.com and connect on Facebook, Twitter,
and Instagram at @ApparentInsurance.
CBS 2 New York
WCBS-TV, WLNY-TV and CBSN New York- a
digital streaming service, are part of CBS Television Stations
group, a division of CBS Corporation and one of the largest
network-owned station groups in the country.
The combined strengths of CBS 2, WLNY 10/55 and CBSN New York
provide a strong platform for serving the entire tri-state
area.
Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings
Clear
Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CCO) is one of the
world's largest outdoor advertising companies with a diverse
portfolio of 450,000 print and digital displays in 31 countries
across Asia, Europe, Latin
America and North America,
reaching millions of people monthly. A growing digital platform
includes over 13,500 digital displays in its international markets
and more than 1,200 digital billboards across 28 markets in the
U.S.
Comprised of two business divisions - Clear Channel
International (CCI), covering markets in Asia, Europe
and Latin America, and Clear
Channel Outdoor Americas (CCOA), the U.S and Caribbean business division – CCO employs
5,600 people globally. More information is available at
www.investor.clearchannel.com, www.clearchannelinternational.com
and www.clearchanneloutdoor.com
Elephant Insurance
Founded in 2009 and headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, Elephant is a
direct-to-consumer insurance company offering auto, home,
motorcycle, and life products to customers. Elephant prides itself
on providing quality service and great prices. Like Apparent
Insurance, Elephant is also owned by the Admiral Group. Elephant
believes people who like what they do, do it better, and has been
named one of the Top Workplaces in Richmond for the last five years, and was
recently certified as a great workplace by the independent analysts
at the Great Place to Work organization. To learn more about
Elephant or to get an insurance quote, go to www.elephant.com.
iHeartMedia
iHeartMedia is the number one audio
company in the United States,
reaching nine out of 10 Americans every month – and with its
quarter of a billion monthly listeners, has a greater reach than
any other media company in the U.S. The company's leadership
position in audio extends across multiple platforms including 850
live broadcast stations; its iHeartRadio digital service available
across more than 250 platforms and 2,000 devices including smart
speakers, smartphones, TVs and gaming consoles; through its
influencers; social; branded iconic live music events; and podcasts
as the #1 commercial podcast publisher. iHeartMedia also leads the
audio industry in analytics and attribution technology for its
marketing partners, using data from its massive consumer base.
iHeartMedia is a division of iHeartMedia, Inc (PINK: IHRTQ).
Visit iHeartMedia.com for more company
information.
National Organizations for Youth Safety
NOYS was originally founded in 1995 as the Traffic Safety
Collaboration supported by funding from government agencies,
including the Department of Transportation. In 2005, NOYS became a
501(c)(3) organization and incorporated as National Organizations
for Youth Safety. With over 100 organizational members -
youth-serving nonprofits, businesses and government agencies, NOYS
works collectively to address the most prevalent causes of injury
and death among teens and young adults in the US. Learn more
at www.NOYS.org.
NHTSA
For more than four decades, the National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has served as the key federal
agency charged with improving safety on our nation's roadways. As
part of the U.S. Department of Transportation, NHTSA is working to
reduce traffic-related deaths and injuries by promoting the use of
safety belts and child safety seats; helping states and local
communities address the threat of distracted, drunk and
drug-impaired drivers; regulating safety standards and
investigating safety defects in motor vehicles; establishing and
enforcing fuel economy standards; conducting research on driver
behavior and traffic safety; and providing consumer information on
issues ranging from child passenger safety to impaired driving. For
more information visit www.nhtsa.gov.
Project Yellow Light
Project Yellow Light is a
film, billboard and radio scholarship competition in which high
school and college students create compelling stories persuading
their peers to develop safe driving habits. This project gives
students a voice and a role in preventing car crashes — the number
one killer of teenagers and young adults in the U.S. Project Yellow
Light was created by Julie, Lowell and Alex
Garner in memory of their son/brother, Hunter, who died
tragically in a car crash in 2007. Each year the winners receive
the Hunter Garner Scholarship.
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SOURCE Ad Council