wfn.org | Church's pastoral message will air in prime time Sept. 11

[NewsDesk <NewsDesk@UMCOM.ORG>]

Sept. 10, 2002 News media contact: Tim Tanton7(615)742-54707Nashville, Tenn.
10-71B{402}

By United Methodist News Service

NBC will air the United Methodist Church's first prime-time, broadcast ad
during the "Concert for America," a two-hour special Sept. 11.

The denomination's spot, "Amen," will tell viewers that the church is
praying with them. The message is one of several that the church is
providing throughout the month as it seeks to minister to the nation on the
first anniversary of the terrorist attacks on America.

"We're using the 'Amen' spot because during this time around the events of
9-11 ... it's more important to give a pastoral message than it is to think
about extending the advertising of the denomination," said the Rev. Steve
Horswill-Johnston, director of the churchwide Igniting Ministry media
campaign. "Amen" was created within days of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist
attacks, when the anthrax scare was under way and fear of Muslims was
increasing, he said.

The spot will reach several million viewers when it appears during the
"Concert for America," which airs at 9 p.m. Eastern time. The show, hosted
by Tom Brokaw, will honor the victims and heroes of Sept. 11. It will
feature artists such as Aretha Franklin, Alan Jackson and Enrique Iglesias
on stage at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in
Washington. The Bushes also will be there; first lady Laura Bush is honorary
chairwoman of the event.

The United Methodist Church is running more than 1,200 spots in September on
cable and broadcast networks, Horswill-Johnston said. It also has picked up
additional "bonus" time from the networks for the week of Sept. 8, in the
wake of commercial advertisers pulling some of their regular spots in
deference to the Sept. 11 anniversary. The "Concert for America" slot is one
such bonus time; Horswill-Johnston estimated that buying that time would
have cost between $120,000 and $250,000.

The church's paid ads include a spot that will air during NBC's "Today"
show, between 8 and 9 a.m. Eastern time, Sept. 11. 
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United Methodist News Service
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