TODAY’s Matt Lauer Promotes Fatherhood Involvement in New Ad

News Anchor Matt Lauer of NBC’s TODAY is featured in a TV public service announcement about Fatherhood Involvement. The Ad Council reports.

Beginning today and airing throughout the week, NBC’s TODAY will debut a series of television public service ads, (PSAs) featuring TODAY’s anchors, on behalf of four social issues. Matt Lauer will address fatherhood involvement. The ads were created pro bono by leading advertising agencies throughout the country in partnership with the Ad Council, a non-profit and leading producer of PSA campaigns for over 70 years. TODAY’s anchors personally selected the social issues they are supporting among the Ad Council’s 50 national campaigns, and participated in brainstorming sessions with the ad agencies to help inform the creative.

The weeklong series, called “TODAY Takes Action,” will feature an intimate look at each social issue, a behind-the-scenes “making of the PSA” segment showing the collaborative effort of the campaign development process, and the premiere of the highly produced PSAs created on behalf of the four award-winning campaigns.

The father of three children, Matt Lauer is featured in a PSA that reminds dads of the critical role they play in their children’s lives. The campaign is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Administration for Children and Families, Office of Family Assistance and the National Responsible Fatherhood Clearinghouse (NRFC) and was created pro bono by Detroit-based ad agency Campbell Ewald. Actor Tom Selleck provides the voiceover for the campaign tagline “Take Time to Be a Dad Today.”

Lauer’s fellow TODAY anchors will be featured in 3 other PSAs this week: Savannah Guthrie and Hunger Prevention; Al Roker and Emergency Preparedness; and Natalie Morales and Shelter Pet Adoption. The new PSAs are being distributed to NBC stations nationwide next week. NBC is also featuring content about the series on TODAY’s website.

“As you will see from the new TV spots, Matt, Savannah, Al and Natalie have a genuine commitment to the issues addressed by their PSAs and they enthusiastically gave us their valuable time, talent and hearts for the ads,” said Peggy Conlon, president and CEO of the Ad Council. “We know from our experience the incredible power of advertising to impact American lives, and I believe these PSAs will play a significant role in raising awareness of these critically important issues, while entertaining audiences.”