OUTREACH NEWSLETTER |
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Outreach Newsletter: December 2003 "If one loves me for my judgment, for
my memory, he does not love me, for I can lose these qualities without
losing myself."
- Blaise Pascal
Press kits are in the mail…okay almost in the mail. The phones at Kelly & Salerno Communications are constantly busy, and I am racking up those frequent flyer miles. This past week we put a public spotlight on all the outreach initiatives you are creating. I paid a visit to our corporate funder, MetLife Foundation, to update them on what you are doing -- they are as thrilled as we at TPT about the imagination and elbow grease going into your work. Don't be surprised if you hear from MetLife employees in your community who want to volunteer. On Tuesday, The Forgetting executive team presented a summary of your efforts to the board of directors of CPB. You are a big hit. I'd say on a score of one to ten, you pulled in an eleven. On a personal note, this weekend, I saw my father, who is in late stage Alzheimer's disease. We made a visit to "The Living Center." He really enjoyed the radio, and I enjoyed the fact that the radio learned that he preferred classical music to popular tunes. We also took a trip down memory lane by clicking on the map. Yes, even in late stage, the image of the New York subway sparked a memory. Next month, more on public relations and
advertising efforts, and how we can continue outreach efforts long after
the broadcast premiere. You can view a Web version of this newsletter, download the Outreach Toolkit and see other information about "The Forgetting" at the outreach Web site: http://www.tpt.org/NPD/forgetting.
2. SPOTLIGHT ON: ADMINISTRATION ON AGING One of the nation's largest providers of home and community-based care for older persons and their caregivers is the Administration on Aging (AoA), an operating division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. AoA promotes the dignity and independence of older people and helps society prepare for an aging population. Two programs of AoA, the Alzheimer's Disease Demonstration Grants to States Program (ADDGS) and the National Family Caregiver Support Program (NFCSP) are excellent resources to help you extend the reach of your campaign and provide resources for Alzheimer's patients and caregivers in your market (see contact information below). The ADDGS are designed to expand the availability of diagnostic and support services, with a particular focus on serving ethnic minorities, low income, rural Alzheimer's families and persons with developmental disabilities and Alzheimer's disease. Projects demonstrate how existing public and private resources within states may be more effectively coordinated and utilized to enhance educational needs and service delivery systems for persons with Alzheimer's disease, their families and caregivers. Project summaries of the 39 state programs as well as contact information may be found at: http://www.aoa.gov/alz/public/alzabout/demo_projects/current.asp and http://www.aoa.gov/ALZ/Public/alzabout/Alz%20Contacts%202002-2003.updated.pdf respectively. In a country where 22.4 million people are informal caregivers, providing an estimated $257 billion dollars worth of care annually, supporting family caregivers is a crucial government service. The AoA's NFCSP provides funding to states based on a proportionate share of the 70+ population. This funding, which has served more than 275,000 caregivers, provides for:
To find services in your community, call the Administration on Aging's Eldercare Locator at 800.677.1116 or access it via http://www.eldercare.gov/.
3. PROMOTION
TIPS-- Ideas for Maximizing Local Impact With the premiere date readily approaching, now's the time to kick it into high gear and get the word out to your members, constituents and community about this groundbreaking night of television. There are many new tools that will be posted at http://www.tpt.org/NPD/forgetting/ by next week including a release on the innovative Web site and a feature, "Alzheimer's Caregivers: The Hidden Second Victim," which may be lifted verbatim for your magazines and newsletters. There is also a customizable press release that we encourage you to send to your local media to announce your initiatives. In addition to the print tools, a set of electronic tools that carry The Forgetting graphics will also be posted next week at http://www.tpt.org/NPD/forgetting/. There will be an electronic postcard you can customize with a message from your leadership and send to your listserv. A choice of three streaming clips and two Web banners that link to the pbs.org Web site will also be available. Easy instructions are included on the site. (The official Web toolkit will also be available on PBS Station Remote Control in early January.) Your station and organization can take ownership of this initiative and serve your members and constituents by guiding them to this important night of Alzheimer's programming.
Many of you have already seen "The Living Center" on The Forgetting's Web site at http://pbs.org/theforgetting. Now that it's up and running, we thought it might be helpful to understand why and how it was created. An Online Stress Reliever The Living Room as Navigation The Different Activities The Sears catalog and map activity showcase pictures from the 1930s through 70s. In the Sears activity, you can page through a 1950s catalog and bookmark your favorite items, while the map activity lets you click on different U.S. locations and see interesting pictures from around the country. These older images are a fun way to spark conversation and interest without testing someone's recent memory. The images draw on long-term memories, which often remain intact as Alzheimer's progresses. Many people like to pack and arrange objects, and in our research, we discovered that people with Alzheimer's often enjoy it even more. The flower arranging and garden shed activities give users familiar objects which they can move around and either organize or artfully arrange, allowing people to be creative without needing to remember complex procedures. The radio (coming soon!) and art box provide pleasant images and sounds that anyone can enjoy, from the earliest to the latest stage of the disease. Each activity lets you enjoy more of what you like by clicking "replay" on the radio or "similar" on the art box. Alternatively, you can get new songs by clicking "next" or new images by clicking "different." We found that even people with very advanced Alzheimer's can appreciate music and images in a rather sophisticated way. They can still discern between their likes and dislikes. There is also a videogame-style puzzle perfect for kids to play while grandparents watch and help. Both the puzzle and soon-to-be-added radio use artificial intelligence to learn the capabilities and interests of the person using them. The puzzle learns the user's skill level and avoids challenges that could test or disappoint those with Alzheimer's, but can still challenge a computer-savvy grandkid. The radio has a deceptively simple interface that only has two options -- next and replay -- but while this "simple" choice is being made, the radio is busy learning your listening style and choosing the next piece of music based on your behavior. As always, if you need more information about or help understanding "The Living Center," please don't hesitate to contact us!
Documentary Excerpt -- Preview 01:00:00 -- Prologue Follow-Up Show Re-Feed PBS Pre-Feed of the 120-minute Show **NOTE: This version includes a tease by David Hyde Pierce at the end of the documentary: "Join me and a panel of experts for Alzheimer's: The Help You Need, coming up next." If you are customizing Alzheimer's: The Help You Need, please record the documentary (first 90 minutes of the January 9 pre-feed) to air prior to your localized version of Alzheimer's: The Help You Need. Also, if you've acquired a pre-release to air The Forgetting an hour earlier on January 21, please be sure to catch this feed. IPBS Pre-Feed of the 90-minute Documentary 6. CONTACT INFORMATION If you still can't find what you're looking for, e-mail us at forgettingproduction@tpt.org. Or, visit the Outreach Website FAQ's at http://www.tpt.org/NPD/forgetting/faq.html and find out who knows what when it comes to The Forgetting. 9. SUBSCRIPTION
INFO…TELL A FRIEND!
Produced by Twin Cities Public Television. Funded by MetLife Foundation. Additional outreach funding by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. |