Parenthood, Doc McStuffins, Years of Living Dangerously and Getting On Among Winners of 2014 Sentinel Awards

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 13, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- The winners of the 15th annual Sentinel Awards were announced in a ceremony Thursday night in Hollywood. The awards recognize exemplary achievements in television storylines and movies that inform, educate and motivate viewers to make choices for healthier and safer lives.

The NBC hit series Parenthood received first place in the Drama category for its story about Hank, played by Ray Romano, who learns he may have Asperger's Syndrome. Executive producer Jason Katims accepted the award for the moving storyline. The Normal Heart on HBO won first place for Drama TV Movie with a powerful story about HIV/AIDS activism in the early 1980s. Mark Ruffalo, Jonathan Groff and Frank De Julio starred in the film based on the original screenplay by Larry Kramer. Dante Di Loreto, executive producer of the film, accepted the award.

The evening featured a special guest, NASA astronaut Dr. Yvonne Cagle, who presented the award in the Climate Change category to Years of Living Dangerously, Showtime's nine-part documentary television series. It won first place for an episode featuring Matt Damon on how rising temperatures are becoming a public health emergency. Executive producer Jerry Weintraub was there to accept the award.

HBO's Getting On took top honors in the Comedy category for its dark humor in dealing with the health-care system in an extended-care hospital ward. Actress, writer, producer and comedian Alex Borstein, who plays Nurse Dawn on the show, presented the award to producer Chrisann Verges. Chris Nee, executive producer of Disney Junior's Doc McStuffins, accepted the top honors in Children's Programming for a storyline that stresses the importance of wearing a helmet when riding a bike. Life According to Sam (HBO) took first place in the Reality/Talk/Documentary category for the topic of progeria, a genetic condition in which symptoms related to aging appear at an early age.

The awards, held at the Taglyan Complex in Hollywood on Oct. 9, are presented in partnership with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention by Hollywood, Health & Society, a program of The Norman Lear Center at the University of Southern California's Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism.

A full list of the winners follows:

Drama

[ FIRST PLACE ]
Parenthood | "Hank's Diagnosis" (NBC)
Topic: Asperger's Syndrome

[ 2nd PLACE ]
Switched at Birth | "Cameron's Cochlear Implant" (ABC Family)
Topic: Deafness

Drama TV Movie

[ FIRST PLACE ]
The Normal Heart (HBO)
Topic: HIV/AIDS

Comedy

[ FIRST PLACE ]
Getting On | "Born on the Fourth of July" (HBO)
Topic: Healthcare

[ 2nd PLACE ]
Nurse Jackie | "Sidecars and Spermicide" (Showtime)
Topic: Substance Abuse

Reality/Talk/Documentary

[ FIRST PLACE ]
Life According to Sam (HBO)
Topic: Progeria

[ 2nd PLACE ]
Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1 (HBO)
Topic: PTSD

[ 3rd PLACE ]
Our America With Lisa Ling | "Black America's Silent Epidemic" (OWN)
Topic: HIV/AIDS

Climate Change

[ FIRST PLACE ]
Years of Living Dangerously | "A Dangerous Future" (Showtime)
Topic: Climate Change

[ 2nd PLACE ]
Ann Curry Reports | "Our Year of Extremes: Did Climate Change Just Hit Home?"
(NBC News)
Topic: Climate Change

Children's Programming

[ FIRST PLACE ]
Doc McStuffins | "Don't' Knock the Noggin" (Disney Junior)
Topic: Importance of wearing a helmet

Hollywood, Health & Society provides entertainment industry professionals with accurate and timely information for storylines dealing with health and climate change through consultations and briefings with experts. Based at The Norman Lear Center, HH&S is a one-stop shop for writers, producers and others in search of credible information on public health and climate change topics. Current and past funders include the CDC, The California Endowment, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, ClimateWorks, the Grantham Foundation, the Skoll Global Threats Fund, the Barr Foundation and the Energy Foundation. For more information about resources for writers, go to www.usc.edu/hhs.

The Norman Lear Center is a multidisciplinary research and public policy center studying and shaping the impact of entertainment and media on society. From its base in the Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, the Lear Center builds bridges between faculty who study aspects of entertainment, media and culture. Beyond campus, it bridges the gap between entertainment industry and academia, and between them and the public. For more information, visit www.learcenter.org.

Located in Los Angeles at the University of Southern California, the Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism is among the nation's leading institutions devoted to the study of journalism and communication, and their impact on politics, culture and society. With an enrollment of more than 2,000 graduate and undergraduate students (as of Fall 2011), USC Annenberg offers bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees in journalism, communication, public diplomacy and public relations. For more information, visit www.annenberg.usc.edu.

SOURCE Hollywood, Health & Society