BROADCAST TV Ad Council to aid v-chip awareness effort

LOS ANGELES TIMES
The Advertising Council, the nation's top producer of public-service announcements, announced this week it is working with the four major television broadcasters, ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox, to educate parents about the v-chip -- the little-used system within all new television sets that can block programming inappropriate for children.
Peggy Conlon, president and chief executive of the Ad Council, says the partnership will help "bridge the tremendous information gap" regarding the circuitry contained in all television sets over 13 inches manufactured since 2000.
Ad Council studies from two weeks ago show fewer than 10 percent of all parents use the v-chip, and 80 percent don't even realize their sets have one.
(Parents whose TVs are without v-chips can also block certain shows by contacting their cable companies.)
The move comes on the heels of a crackdown on indecent programming by Congress and the Federal Communications Commission, which has asked broadcasters to make voluntary efforts to solve the problems.
Broadcasters summit
On Wednesday, the National Association of Broadcasters opened a summit on responsible programming in Washington, D.C.
Unlike sporadic educational efforts of the past, the new announcements will refer viewers to a link on each network's Web site that will provide detailed information and tutorials, Conlon says. Drop-down boxes will feature manufacturer instructions on how to use the v-chip.
Although Fox has already begun an educational campaign, it will join the group effort. ABC will air its ads late this week; the others are still developing their ads, Conlon says. Benchmark studies will be conducted at the beginning and end of the campaigns to assess their effectiveness, Conlon says.