Partners Join to Help Cartoon Network's STOP BULLYING: SPEAK UP Build Momentum to Bullying Prevention Awareness Day

ATLANTA, Oct. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- Cartoon Network, a division of Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. (TBS, Inc.), today revealed the full scope of components for its multi-platform STOP BULLYING: SPEAK UP campaign aimed at empowering youth to take action to reduce bullying.  The on-air and online campaign picks up momentum with new partners and additional resources from Time Warner and officially launched Monday, October 4, in conjunction with the fifth annual National Bullying Prevention Awareness Month, sponsored by the National Center for Bullying Prevention and leading up to Bullying Prevention Awareness Day, Wednesday, October 20.

(Photo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20101007/CG78608)

(Photo:  http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20101007/CG78608)

The October 4 launch began with the premiere of original on-air PSAs directing young viewers and parents to visit CartoonNetwork.com for solution-oriented online resources developed in coordination with the network's recently established Bullying Prevention Advisory Board.  Popular television teen actors of the Cartoon Network series, Dude, What Would Happen—CJ Manigo, Ali Sepasyar and Jackson Rogow—are featured in the first round of PSAs.  The PSAs also are running on Time Warner's TNT and TBS television networks, CWTV.com and the CW social media networks, CNN.com, HLN.com and the CNN Airport Network, dramatically increasing the reach of these important messages.

Further extending the campaign's reach, STOP BULLYING: SPEAK UP partners are helping get to kids where they gather.  NCM Media Networks, a leading integrated media company reaching U.S. consumers in movie theaters, online and through mobile technology, will run the PSAs throughout the month on its Lobby Entertainment Network (LEN) of screens strategically placed in high traffic locations throughout the lobbies of select AMC, Cinemark and Regal Entertainment Group movie theaters nationwide.  Cartoon Network also has secured additional print, digital and in-mall media support for the campaign.

As the cornerstone of the initiative's online platform, the dedicated micro-site—www.StopBullyingSpeakUp.com—went live on October 4.  The micro-site features a STOP BULLYING: SPEAK UP pledge, social network hyperlinks, tip sheets, digital bulletin board, community rewards and a section devoted exclusively to educating parents on bullying prevention.  Tools from the partners, such as the Anti-Defamation League's (ADL) No Place for Hate, a free series of seminars for schools; A World of Difference®, a formal school curriculum; and Cyber ALLY, which teaches kids to be an ally to victims of digital bullying, will be available on the micro-site.  Other participating partners include the Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA), Project Change, a peer mentoring program for middle and elementary school children, and the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Service's Health Resource Service Administration (HRSA).  

"STOP BULLYING: SPEAK UP is truly made possible through the strength of our partnership," commented Stuart Snyder, president and chief operations officer of Cartoon Network.  "With their help we can spread the word about this crucial issue and share helpful bullying prevention measures.  We are hopeful the messages will be absorbed by our youth and ultimately impact the overall prevalence of bullying in this country."

With the help of BGCA, the campaign hopes to reach the roughly 4.2 million kids served by BGCA through the distribution of Bullying Prevention kits.  More than 4,000 kits will be distributed to BGCA clubs nationwide on Bullying Prevention Awareness Day.  Club staff and leaders can use the kit as an educational and teaching tool.  Each kit comes with DVD copies of the PSAs, STOP BULLYING: SPEAK UP posters, tip sheets, digital banner ads, bumper stickers and buttons.

As part of this large commitment to anti-bullying and in collaboration with STOP BULLYING: SPEAK UP, CNN will present Bullying: No Escape: an Anderson Cooper 360° Special Report with PEOPLE Magazine and Cartoon Network to air on Friday, October 8.  Guest panelists will include Cartoon Network Bullying Prevention Board members Kevin Jennings, Assistant Deputy Secretary of Education for the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools, and Dr. Susan Limber of the Institute on Family and Neighborhood Life, Clemson University.  They will discuss the latest understandings and response options for bystanders, who represent 75-85 percent of students in schools considered witnesses to bullying. A copy of the AC 360° special report also will be included in the Bullying Prevention Kits.  

Further highlighting National Bullying Prevention Awareness Month, PEOPLE Magazine will run a bullying package in the October 18 issue which hits newsstands on October 8.  This special editorial section will feature interviews with residents of South Hadley, MA, Phoebe Prince's hometown, confessions of a former bully, stories from students who were tormented in school and much more.

Cartoon Network (CartoonNetwork.com), currently seen in more than 97 million U.S. homes and 166 countries around the world, is Turner Broadcasting System, Inc.'s ad-supported cable service now available in HD offering the best in original, acquired and classic entertainment for youth and families.  Nightly from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. (ET, PT), Cartoon Network shares its channel space with Adult Swim, a late-night destination showcasing original and acquired animated and live-action series for young adults 18-34.

Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a Time Warner company, creates and programs branded news, entertainment, animation and young adult media environments on television and other platforms for consumers around the world.

SOURCE Cartoon Network