Public Service Announcements (Essay Sample)

Public Service Announcements
Public service announcements are very important in the generation of awareness of very critical issues in the society while also passing across information about non-profit making organizations at no costs at all. The aim of the PSAs is to bring about social change and increase awareness about social issues in the society (Lang & Goodwill, n.d). The rights of the victims are always at the centre of the PSAs. Most stations donate at last a third of their time to air PSA at no charge at all, which saves the PSA producer’s a lot of funds that would otherwise be used in passing their message across. In this case, the National Football League teamed up with No More to air a public awareness message on domestic abuse during the most watched game of the year.
The story behind this message is a 911 call that was placed by a woman to the police dispatch service in which she ordered pizza as a way of masking her call to the police (Vranica, 2015). Although this call was made over a decade ago, the message is relevant to the current society. The woman in this case was a victim of domestic abuse, and she came up with creative way through which she asked for help from the police without raising suspicion or jeopardizing her safety (Snopes.com, 2015). This woman was able to use creativity as a means of asking for help without necessarily having to give away the fact that she was calling for help.
The media coverage of the PSA by the NLF can be said to be a very positive one. It is positive in the manner in the sense that the message is able to reach people of many ages from children to the elderly at minimum costs. There has always been a tendency of people of variety ages to get together, sit and enjoy games and as such this was a very strategic media for PSA. The other positive aspect about this media was the fact that one of the NFL players Ray Rice had violated the rights of his wife, and as a result of the staging of the ad, the purpose of the message was going to have a larger impact on the society by reminding all that rights to all people should be upheld irrespective of the social status in the society. The other message could have been that violation of human rights had no position in sport. Therefore, this was a very positive media for the case of the PSA.
The audience of this ad in the NFL media can be said to be the whole society. The statement means that people of all ages from children, teenagers and adults are the audience of this advertisement. The more specific audience of this advert can be said to be the sporting people and their families, and all the other stakeholders that are associated with sport, where sport is represented by the super Bowl in this particular case and married people in the society
This audience is very important because the message about domestic violence against women in particular and the general information that any violation of human rights is unacceptable. The composition of the audience of all ages is important because this is a message that should be passed to children so that they can learn and grow up knowing that violence to women and any other kind of human right violation is unacceptable. The same applies to teenagers who are about to enter marriage life while the adults are reminded of avoiding violence in their marriage. Sporting people as the audience are important because they are adored and are role models hence the need to lead as examples. The rest of sporting stakeholders such as the NFL association and sponsors are important audience in the sense that they are reminded that sporting activities should not just be pursued for the financial aspect, but to the general welfare of the society, where antisocial behavior such as violence to women is discouraged. Women as the target of this advert are important because many of them undergo abuses but few come out to reveal this evil. They are therefore being encouraged to do the same and even employ creative ways of reporting the same without endangering their lives.
This is an important message to all 911 operators as it indicates the importance of differentiating coded messages from pranks and taking swift action to protect those seeking for help. The quick action taken by this operator should serve as a challenge to all other 911 operators.
By airing this PSA during its most watched game, the NFL wants people to take action against domestic violence (Deutsch, 2015). By teaming up with No More, an anti-domestic violence and sexual assault organization, the NFL seeks to raise awareness about the prevalence of domestic abuse in America. This is despite the fact that some of its players have been involved in cases of domestic abuse. Airing this public service announcement serves as an indication that the organization is willing to take action against its players that are involved in any cases of domestic abuse or sexual assault (Aquillano, 2015). By taking the risk to air this PSA during its most watched game of the year shows the dedication and the risks that the NFL is ready to take to bring to end the domestic abuse vice that is crippling the American society right on its knees.
Domestic abuse remains to be a major shortcoming that is eating away on its social prosperity and development. This story is used as a basis through which the society can raise awareness about domestic abuse (KFOR-TV & Nol...