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Today, HHS’ Administration for Children and Families (ACF), along with the National Responsible Fatherhood Clearinghouse, has launched a new series of public service advertisements (PSAs) recognizing the critical role fathers play in the lives of their children.
The public service campaign created by the non-profit Ad Council coincides with Tell a Joke Day and centers on the popularity and growing trend of telling “Dad” jokes. Through sharing dad jokes, the PSAs aim to communicate to fathers that the smallest moments spent with their children can make the biggest difference in their children’s lives. The ads direct fathers to Fatherhood.gov where users will find helpful tips, tools, information and jokes to help them get more involved with their kids.
An estimated 24 million children in the U.S. don’t live with their biological fathers. A recent Ad Council study on Fatherhood Involvement found that most fathers surveyed said that the issue of “father involvement” was important to them personally and most have sought information about how to spend more quality time with their children.
“Although this campaign utilizes a lighthearted approach to the subject of effective fatherhood, its emphasis is one of real importance to fathers and families everywhere; that fathers play a crucial role in impacting positively the lives of their children and of their families as a whole,” said Steve Wagner, ACF acting assistant secretary.
The campaign tagline “Take time to be a dad today” is part of an ongoing effort to encourage dads to play an active role in their children’s lives. Kids are featured in the PSAs re-telling the cherished jokes their dads shared with them, uniquely emphasizing the simple moments that a dad and child can share. Lisa Sherman, President and CEO of the Ad Council adds, “Dad jokes represent more than just a trend; these jokes are smiles, moments, and memories made with one of the most important people in a child’s life. We hope this work shows dads that making an impact on their children’s lives can be as simple as making them laugh.”
“Jokes can be found in every dad’s bag of tricks — dads of all backgrounds, situations and complexities. Some are groan-worthy and some are downright corny. But that exchange of humor, which only takes a shared moment between dads and kids, creates cherished childhood memories,” said Jo Shoesmith, Chief Creative Officer at Campbell Ewald, creative agency behind the Dad Jokes campaign. “This work captures all of the natural, quirky ways kids go about reciting jokes shared by their dads.”
The Ad Council is distributing the new PSAs to media outlets nationwide this week, and they will also be made available through PSACentral.org.
According to Kenneth Braswell, Executive Director of Fathers Incorporated and Director of the National Responsible Fatherhood Clearinghouse, “The only thing better than a well-delivered, corny dad joke from your dad is hearing it from your child. Once you become a dad, you cherish these small, fun moments. The new PSAs are a reminder that dads make memorable and meaningful contributions to their children in many different ways.”
Stay connected with the campaign via social media on Facebook and Twitter. Individuals can also join the conversation by using the hashtag #DadJokesRule to share their own “dad jokes.”
For more information on the campaign or to access additional resources, visit www.fatherhood.gov.
ABOUT ACF
ACF funded 39 organizations across the United States to provide Responsible Fatherhood activities. New Pathways for Fathers and Families Demonstration Grants are used to:
- strengthen positive father-child engagement
- improve employment and economic mobility opportunities; and
- improve healthy relationships (including couple and co-parenting) and marriage.
ABOUT HHS
HHS supports responsible fatherhood in diverse ways. Because engaged fathers strengthen families and contribute to healthy outcomes for children, many HHS programs integrate support for fathers. These include Head Start, child support programs, and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. HHS also supports programs that focus on responsible fatherhood, such as the Promoting Responsible Fatherhood grant program administered by the Office of Family Assistance (OFA).
ABOUT NATIONAL RESPONSIBLE FATHERHOOD CLEARINGHOUSE
The National Responsible Fatherhood Clearinghouse (NRFC) is funded by the Administration for Children and Families’ OFA to assist policymakers, practitioners, and fathers to promote and support responsible fatherhood. NRFC provides evidence-informed materials, resources, and tools including timely information on fatherhood issues, and access to print and electronic publications.
ABOUT THE AD COUNCIL
The Ad Council is a private, non-profit organization with a rich history of marshaling volunteer talent from the advertising and media industries to deliver critical messages to the American public. Having produced literally thousands of public service campaigns addressing the most pressing social issues of the day, the Ad Council has affected, and continues to affect, tremendous positive change by raising awareness, inspiring action and saving lives. To learn more about the Ad Council and its campaigns visit adcouncil.org, like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or view our PSAs on YouTube.
ABOUT CAMPBELL EWALD
Campbell Ewald is a U.S.-based full service, fully integrated advertising and marketing communications agency. The agency provides both traditional and specialized capabilities including advertising; insights and strategic planning; integrated content strategy and development; digital; social, DM/CRM, retail and experiential marketing; and media planning and buying. With offices in Detroit, Los Angeles and New York, Campbell Ewald has been recognized by the Warc 100 as one of the top 10 agencies in North America, and its work on behalf of clients has been honored by, among others, the Cannes International Advertising Festival, the Effies, the One Show, the AAF Mosaic Awards, the ECHO Awards and ADWEEK.
