PRSA Announces Winners of 2018 Silver Anvil Awards

“PR Pro of the Year” Presented to Team Behind “The Talk – Creating a National Movement to End ‘The Talk’ and Racial Bias” Campaign

 “Don’t Be An Accidental Drug Dealer – A Campaign to Combat Tennessee’s Opioid Epidemic” Wins “Best of Silver Anvil” Award

NEW YORK (June 7, 2018) – The Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) tonight announced the winners of the Silver Anvil Awards, the communication industry’s oldest and most esteemed honor. PRSA handed out 51 Silver Anvils and 65 Awards of Excellence at its annual Silver Anvil Awards Ceremony, which took place at New York’s Edison Ballroom. Check out the full list of Silver Anvil Award winners.

The “PR Pro of the Year” Award, which honors an individual or a team, was presented to Procter & Gamble/My Black is Beautiful (MBIB) and the EGAMI Group for their campaign, “The Talk – Creating a National Movement to End ‘The Talk’ and Racial Bias.”

Formed in 2007 by a group of visionary black women P&G employees, MBIB is an engagement platform and digital community of nearly three million members that celebrates the diverse collective beauty of black women and encourages them to define and promote their own beauty standard. Leading up to the 10-year anniversary of MBIB, the EGAMI Group was engaged to provide insight and counsel to relaunch the campaign, expanding the conversation beyond outward beauty and towards cultural relevance.

EGAMI Group’s research found that black parents have unique conversations with their children to prepare them for biases that will likely affect their lives. Working closely with lead advertising agency partner BBDO, EGAMI’S insights were developed into a two-minute film entitled “The Talk.” The film implores: It's time to talk about "The Talk," so we can end the need to have it.

"We are humbled by the Silver Anvil Award for 'The Talk,' a campaign designed to drive meaningful conversations among all people about the unique biases people of African Ancestry face,” said Cheryl Overton, president, EGAMI Group. “Every day we’re confronted with evidence of the racial tensions that exist. We believe brands can play a constructive role in illuminating social issues. The Egami team appreciates the opportunity P&G provided in entrusting us with this important, purpose-driven work.”

This year’s “Best of Silver Anvil Award” was presented to BlueCross BlueShield Tennessee (BCBST) and MP&F Strategic Communications for their “Don’t Be An Accidental Drug Dealer – A Campaign To Combat Tennessee’s Opioid Epidemic” campaign.

In 2015, The CDC ranked Tennessee second in the nation in opioid prescribing and fourth in the nation for overdose deaths, and BlueCross covered more than 1 million opioid prescriptions and dispensed 6.6 million opioids. BlueCross called on MP&F to find an organization it could partner with to help make a difference, and the team identified Count It! Lock It! Drop It! (CLD), a program for prescription drug abuse prevention created by the Coffee County Anti-Drug Coalition in Manchester, Tenn. In 2016, the BlueCross BlueShield Health Foundation approved a multi-year grant to expand CLD to 44 counties identified as “hot spots” for opioid abuse.

Tennesseans were encouraged to do their part to help fight the opioid epidemic by counting, locking up and dropping off their unneeded or old prescriptions. In one year, awareness of CLD increased by 110 percent, and the number of people who said they planned to take unused opioids to drop boxes in Tennessee rose from 30 percent to 43 percent.

“Back in 2015, with opioid addiction and overdose deaths in our state at crisis levels, the BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee Health Foundation set out to find a way to engage communities with a specific way to curb opiate misuse and abuse,” said Roy Vaughn, APR, senior vice president and chief communications officer, BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee. “We awarded a multi-year grant to the Count It! Lock It! Drop It! initiative in Coffee County, Tenn., and took it statewide. The initiative urges Tennesseans to count, lock up, and drop off their pills at a program drop box or take-back event. We have seen tangible results that include tons of collected pills, and we are proud of our team and our agency, MP&F, for the great job they’ve done planning and executing the campaign.”

“The Silver Anvil Awards spotlight stellar work being created throughout the communications industry,” said 2018 PRSA National Chair Anthony D’Angelo, APR, Fellow PRSA. “This year’s many cause-related entries highlight the rising importance of advocacy efforts designed to engage with, and make a positive impact on, the larger society where our organizations operate."                                                                                     

About the Public Relations Society of America
PRSA is the nation's largest professional organization serving the communications community. The organization's mission is to make communications professionals smarter, better prepared and more connected through all stages of their career. PRSA achieves this by offering its members thought leadership, innovative lifelong learning opportunities to help them develop new skills, enhance their credibility and connect with a strong network of professionals. The organization sets the standards of professional excellence and ethical conduct for the public relations industry. PRSA collectively represents more than 30,000 members consisting of communications professionals spanning every industry sector nationwide, and college and university students who constitute the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA). Learn more about PRSA at https://www.prsa.org.

Media Contact:
Rod Granger
Director, Content & Integrated Communications
PRSA
rod.granger@prsa.org