Message for the Public
Activity 1: What is a PSA?
(5 minutes)
You’ve probably been told, a million or so times, that it’s important to eat your fruit and vegetables, and you’ve likely heard about how it’s not safe to text and drive. Though important, these refrains can start to lose their impact the more and more you hear them, especially if they are from the same people all the time. Some organizations create public service announcements (PSAs) to help educate people about issues—everything from recognizing the signs of a heart attack to the importance of exercise—and encourage healthy decisions. A well-written PSA can be more powerful than regular advice because it uses slogans, music, emotion, intrigue, powerful images, or sounds.
PSAs can be images, videos, or audio clips. Listen to this audio PSA, and this one. How are what you listened to similar to advertisements? How are they different? Write down your ideas or share them with someone else.
Activity 2: What makes a strong message?
(15 minutes)
Only YOU can prevent forest fires. Does that statement sound familiar? It is the catchphrase of Smokey the Bear, one of the most successful PSAs in the United States. What do you think helps make a PSA successful? What type of messages are you likely to pay attention to and remember?
Activity 3: What do you want to share?
(20 minutes)
Watch this animated video on making a PSA. Now it’s time for a challenge! Chose a cause that is important to you, like cyber bullying, equal rights, availability of after-school programs, or anything else you are passionate about. (If you want some more topic ideas, browse this collection of radio public service announcements from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.)
After you choose a cause for your radio PSA, brainstorm what you know about it. Then write down any questions you have and research them. Add ideas for how you will catch your audience’s attention, for example, with a shocking statistic. How can you tell a short story or give a compelling message in a unique way that will get people to listen and, even better, to act?
Activity 4: Write
(15 minutes)
Use all your ideas and notes to write a public service announcement. Keep it short; aim for 15 or 30 seconds, which are typical lengths for radio PSAs. You can listen to a lot of examples from PSA Central.
Read what you’ve written out loud to hear how it sounds. Read it for someone else and ask for feedback. Do you need to make any changes to how it is written, or read, so that it is more understandable and effective?
Activity 6: Submit
(5 minutes)
Want to earn a few digital badges in audio production? Email the digital media you created to BGCAmediamaking@gmail.com
Still Interested? Take a look at these resources:
Guide: Audacity Manual
Article: Public Service Advertising - Background and Future
Guide: Preparing Public Service Announcements
Video: Prophetic 1995 Student Internet PSA
Article: Public Service Announcements are a Vital Part of Media
What You'll Need:
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Record a Public Service Announcement
Activity 5: Record
(10 minutes)
After you have practiced reading your PSA out loud a few times, record it.
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If you are using a smartphone, record using the voice or sound recorder.
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If you are using a computer, you have two options.
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You could use your computer’s built-in sound recorder, which you can find by searching your computer for “recorder.”
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You could download the free software Audacity. To begin recording click the button in the toolbar that has a red circle. (If you’d like more info, here is a fact sheet for recording your voice in Audacity.)
Record a test; stop recording; and play it back. Does it sound ok? Is your voice a good volume? If you’re having trouble, search for an online tutorial for the recorder you are using.
When you feel confident, record your PSA. Then play back your recording. Re-record if you’d like, or save the file. Like making PSAs for a cause you care about? Don’t stop! Now try making a PSA for the same cause but using a different medium, like video, photography, or drawing.