A public service announcement (PSA) or community service announcement (CSA) is a non-commercial advertisement broadcast on radio or television, for the public interest. PSAs are intended to modify public attitudes by raising awareness about specific issues. The most common topics of PSAs are health and safety. A typical PSA is part of a public awareness campaign to inform or educate the public about an issue such as smoking or compulsive gambling.

Public service advertising campaigns are widespread around the world. Such advertising is generally produced and distributed on a cooperative basis by governmental agencies or nonprofit organizations acting in concert with private advertising and mass media companies. In most cases, the nonprofit provides the programming that is to be advertised, while the participating advertising agency and media companies provide creative services, media planning, and dissemination services on a pro bono basis.

Often, a charitable organization releasing a PSA enlists the support of a celebrity; examples include Michael J. Fox's PSAs in the U.S. supporting research into Parkinson's Disease and Crips street gang leader Stanley "Tookie" Williams speaking from prison to urge youth not to join gangs.

Some religious groups produce PSAs on non-religious themes such as family values. Examples include the long-running "Homefront" campaign from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Seventh-day Adventist Church, and more recently the United Methodist Church.

The military produces PSAs to recruit enlistees, in addition to paid advertising and sponsorship efforts.

In the U.S, the role of PSAs was affected by deregulation of the broadcasting industry in the 1980s. Previously, a broadcast license was assigned to a television or radio station that was expected to serve as a "public trustee" by airing PSAs (in addition to meeting other requirements).

United States producers distribute traditional PSAs distributed to station directors.

Some television shows featuring very special episodes made PSAs after the episodes. For example, Conrad Bain of Diff'rent Strokes spoke two PSAs after the episodes dealing with child sexual abuse and hitchhiking.

Examples

• "Do you know where your children are?"

• "Don't Copy That Floppy"

• You Drink and Drive, you Lose

• Heritage Minutes

• Hinterland Who's Who

• "Just Say No"

• TheTruth.com

• "Crying Indian" (sponsored by Keep America Beautiful)

• "Love. It Comes in All Colors"

• "Learn Not to Burn" with Dick van Dyke

• McGruff the Crime Dog: "Take a bite out of crime!"

• NBC's One to Grow On

• Smokey Bear: "Only you can prevent forest fires!" and "Only you can prevent wildfires!"

• NBC's The More You Know

• This Is Your Brain on Drugs

• I learned it by watching you

• Woodsy Owl: "Give a hoot, don't pollute!" and "Lend a hand — care for the land!"

• Mr. Yuk

• Heather Crowe

• United Negro College Fund: "Because a mind is a terrible thing to waste."

• C.O.P.S. For Kids

• American Indian College Fund: "If I Stay on the Rez"

• United States Marine Corps's Toys for Tots

• Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog: "Sonic Sez"

• Click It or Ticket

• The Faster the Speed, the Bigger the Mess

• "FUR... You Deserve It" (anti-fur trading)

• Above the Influence

• Yul Brynner: "Now that I'm gone, I tell you: don't smoke." (sponsored by American Cancer Society)

• ''"...and knowing is half the battle."

• Texting while driving

• Drunk Driving: Over the Limit, Under Arrest

• When you say "That's so gay", do you realize what you say? Knock it off.

See also

• Cause marketing

• Public information film

• Ad Council