Channel Thirteen: TV gone wrong

This case study explains how PBS, the public and government funded US broadcaster, promoted Channel THIRTEEN, its New York City-based affiliate, to people aged 25-45, highlighting its quality mission by promoting several fake reality TV show concepts.

Channel Thirteen: TV gone wrong

CHI&Partners NY

Executive summary

How tapping into a cultural truth about the state of TV allowed us to spread the message about the importance of quality programming.

In the summer of 2013, we launched a series of new reality TV shows. Advertising for The Dillionaire (tagline "Life's a Pickle"), Married to a Mime (tagline "She's got a lot to say") and Meet the Tanners (tagline "The family that sprays together stays together") appeared on the NY subway, on TV and online.

The twist was that these shows were fake: a commentary on the sorry state...

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