Princeton, N.J. – Sept. 8, 1999: Educational Testing Service and The Advertising Council today announced the launch of a national public service advertising campaign intended to discourage academic cheating. The multi-year campaign kicks off with broadcast and print ads centered around the concept, "The Ref in Your Head." The first advertising messages feature a whistle blowing referee symbolic of the student's conscience and the tagline, "Cheating is a personal foul."

"Cheating undermines integrity and fairness at all levels, said Nancy S. Cole, president and chief executive officer of ETS. It's a barrier to learning that can lead to weak performance in many areas of life and calls for the American public's time and attention." This public service campaign, focused on the values of individual learning, will truly increase awareness of the issue and, perhaps most important, move children, as well as their parents and teachers, to recognize that cheating prevents learning and masks true accomplishments and weaknesses. I firmly believe that this advertising campaign could have a powerful, measurable, and long-term beneficial impact on our children, the nation's educational system, and society as a whole."

The primary audience for the campaign is middle-school children ages 10 - 14. Research shows cheating behavior begins to develop during these years. The campaign's creative design was a pro bono effort by Griffin Bacal Inc., specialists in children's advertising and marketing and responsible for the development of the campaign strategies and creative concepts: "Our goal is to fortify negative early views of cheating with empowering strategies for kids not to adopt or tolerate cheating for themselves or their friends," said Paul Kurnit, the agency's president. "Through numerous discussions with issue experts, focus groups and online surveys, we determined that messages such as ‘You're only hurting yourself' are not effective in discouraging the behavior. The key communication opportunity is to empower kids not to cheat by giving them lifestyle reinforcing tools to make the right decision on their own. The ref is an icon kids relate to in this context as their conscience to do the right thing."

The campaign to discourage academic cheating is built around two 30-second television spots as well as radio and print advertising. The television spots were distributed to media nationwide by the Advertising Council late last month. A Web site (www.nocheating.org) and toll-free hotline (1-888-88CHEAT) have been established to support the advertising and enable students, parents, teachers and the media to access additional campaign material. Additional materials, including classroom kits, curriculum guides, and posters to help teachers reinforce the campaign messages in their classrooms will be developed as the campaign moves forward.

Sharon Robinson, senior vice president and chief operating officer of ETS (and a former classroom teacher) said: "No other organization has taken responsibility for attempting to address this significant issue on a widespread basis. ETS's non-profit mission compels us to address this societal problem, and to address the effects within the American educational system. We view this as a critical opportunity for ETS to help our children reach their full potential."

When the folks at ETS first presented the cheating issue to the Ad Council, there were many who thought this issue may be too big of a challenge. But we're an organization with a strong history of addressing difficult topics. From child abuse to hunger, from domestic violence to drunk driving – the Ad Council has demonstrated that with solid research and strong creative a public service campaign can move people to action and effect social change," said Murray Gaylord, executive vice president & chief operating officer. "According to research conducted by the Ad Council and Public Agenda, only 38% of Americans think the next generation will make this country a better place. The public is disturbed by the lack of values such as honesty, civility, and responsibility in today's youth. This campaign will help bring the issue of character to the forefront of the national dialogue, and hopefully change that perception in the future."

"The Ad Council receives more than one hundred requests for sponsorship each year," according to Edward Tate, ETS's director of external communications. "The acceptance of our campaign demonstrates the Council's belief in the significance of this issue on a national level and its commitment to working with us to address the issue," he said. "We look forward to leading the way for change."

Tate adds that ETS has been working with issue experts and third-party organizations throughout the development of the campaign and has received enthusiastic support from numerous organizations including The Character Education Partnership, Josephson Institute of Ethics, National Association of Secondary School Principals, National Honor Society, Council of Chief State School Officer's, and Center for Academic Integrity, among others.

The Advertising Council is a private, nonprofit organization which has been the leading producer of public service communication programs in the United States since 1942. It supports campaigns that benefit children, families and communities. The communications programs are national in scope and have generated strong, measurable results. Ad Council campaigns such as "Friends Don't Let Friends Drive Drunk," "Take A Bite Out Of Crime," and "A Mind is a Terrible Thing to Waste" have helped save lives and resources, educate the public about issues and concerns of the day, and make America a healthier country to live in. In 1998, Ad Council campaigns received more than $1 billion in donated print and electronic media time and space.