With a new wave of COVID-19 sweeping the nation and concerning trends here in Illinois, Governor JB Pritzker launched a new awareness campaign today to encourage residents to take safety precautions throughout the upcoming holiday season to protect themselves and their families — and ultimately save lives.
The Illinois Department of Public Health is recommending that residents stay home as much as possible and only leave for essential activities. To provide safer ways to celebrate, ‘Healthy Holidays to You’ highlights what doctors and scientists consider top methods to reduce your risk of contracting or spreading the virus: limiting gatherings to your immediate family or keeping them virtual, maintaining 6 feet of distance from others and wearing a mask, whether you’re indoors or out.
“Ahead of the holiday season, IDPH has provided recommendations for keeping you and your family safe from the virus,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “We are making every effort to remind people what epidemiologists and other infectious disease specialists say are the best ways to reduce the risk of contracting COVID-19. Traditions are so important to all of us – but this year we all need to celebrate a bit differently.”
“This year’s holiday season is going to be difficult and challenging for many of us,” said IDPH Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike. “This campaign was designed to emphasize the importance of making safer decisions and checking in on loved ones during this time in order to stay safe and strong for each other.”
Developed by Illinois-based ad agency O’Keefe Reinhard & Paul, the holiday campaign pays tribute to beloved holiday songs and traditions with its suggestions for safe practices throughout the season. “Over the wifi and through the zoom to grandmother’s house we go” and “if you’re going to jingle, jingle six feet apart” are a couple of the light-hearted advisories with serious messages that the television spots and billboards will feature across the state. The scenarios brought to life in the campaign demonstrate proven ways to reduce the risk of spreading the virus, according to Illinois Department of Public Health epidemiologists and researchers modeling COVID-19 in Illinois.
The campaign will reach Illinoisans statewide in both English and Spanish through a variety of traditional and online media channels, including cable, broadcast and connected TV; streaming audio and radio; billboards and bus shelters; digital display and video; print and social media. Like other coronavirus-related expenses, costs are reimbursable by the federal government.
Those who will abide by it have already been doing so.
Those who think this is either some grand conspiracy or only affects the elderly will ignore it citing their constitutional right to gorge on complex carbohydrates and trans fats.
Needs to be said but agreed sounds like a weird movie trailer- times are tough, chaos everywhere, the world on edge only one man can save us Ryan Gossling staring in Thanksgiving the Aftermath, cameos by the Rock, Jennifer Hudson Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez
Show the gatherings of families who’ve lost someone already Aka the Tiny Tim scene in a Christmas Carol. Not to be harsh but this is not going to convince anyone.
It’s a great reminder, cartoons for kids to remind the grown ups, it’s not designed to make folks change how they should go about their business, but to remind folks what should be the norm.
Those people already are, and have been for months.
This was simply a public service reminder.
Pritzker, IDPH, health care providers know they aren’t reaching anyone new. Simply doing the basics until a vaccine.
- Boone's is Back - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 11:18 am:
Put the money towards our debt.
- illinois_citizen - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 11:25 am:
Pritzker, IDPH, health care providers know they aren’t reaching anyone new. - Then don’t do anything the people already following guidelines do not need a reminder. At least make an attempt to convince the non-believers.
1) This money would have been better spent on contact tracers.
2) #AllinIllinois has failed as a social media campaign.
3) This money would have been better spent educating bar and restaurant owners, and highlighting those that enforce the rules.
4) This ad tells me that there are so few people who support Pritzker’s stay-at-home, they had to hire cartoon characters. I know that isn’t true, but that’s what it says.
I appreciate the effort, but at a time when the Governor is saying, “what will it take to make this real for you?” I would think they could have come up with something about 1000x more hard hitting and therefore impactful that Saturday Morning Cartoons.
- Almost the weekend - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 10:23 am:
This feels like moving the chairs on the Titanic.
- Lurker - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 10:28 am:
That voice scared me.
- Moe Berg - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 10:30 am:
That ought to convince people. /s
How about being more direct?
“If you want grandma to live, stay away from her this Thanksgiving.”
Or, show some scenes from inside a hospital COVID ward.
Or, ask Mark Brown if you can license excerpts from today’s column and others he’s written about the COVID dead and their heartbroken families.
Maybe it’s time to stop being so nice.
- Cardinal Fan - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 10:31 am:
Like the idea . . . the voice though kinda reminds me of Darth Vader
- Flyin' Elvis'-Utah Chapter - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 10:33 am:
B
Those who will abide by it have already been doing so.
Those who think this is either some grand conspiracy or only affects the elderly will ignore it citing their constitutional right to gorge on complex carbohydrates and trans fats.
- Frank talks - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 10:33 am:
Needs to be said but agreed sounds like a weird movie trailer- times are tough, chaos everywhere, the world on edge only one man can save us Ryan Gossling staring in Thanksgiving the Aftermath, cameos by the Rock, Jennifer Hudson Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez
- DownstateR - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 10:35 am:
Show the gatherings of families who’ve lost someone already Aka the Tiny Tim scene in a Christmas Carol. Not to be harsh but this is not going to convince anyone.
- back bench - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 10:35 am:
This should appeal to people with abnormally small heads and very long arms.
- Oswego Willy - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 10:36 am:
It’s a “B-“
It’s a great reminder, cartoons for kids to remind the grown ups, it’s not designed to make folks change how they should go about their business, but to remind folks what should be the norm.
In that, it does better than a “C”
It’s a “B-“
- ;) - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 10:41 am:
How much of our tax dollars did they waste on that? Hopefully nothing. I know college kids who could’ve made that for free.
- Peanut Gallery - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 10:43 am:
Can pritzker chip in for these ads instead of the taxpayers? He just burned through $50 million on the fair tax that went nowhere.
- Responsa - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 10:57 am:
Not impressed. You want people to take this seriously then do a serious ad–not a cartoon.
C-
- Steve Rogers - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 10:59 am:
Responsa beat me to it. Repsonsa +1
- Flyin' Elvis'-Utah Chapter - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 11:01 am:
“you want people to take this seriously”
Those people already are, and have been for months.
This was simply a public service reminder.
Pritzker, IDPH, health care providers know they aren’t reaching anyone new. Simply doing the basics until a vaccine.
- Boone's is Back - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 11:18 am:
Put the money towards our debt.
- illinois_citizen - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 11:25 am:
Pritzker, IDPH, health care providers know they aren’t reaching anyone new. - Then don’t do anything the people already following guidelines do not need a reminder. At least make an attempt to convince the non-believers.
- Charlie Brown - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 12:02 pm:
1) This money would have been better spent on contact tracers.
2) #AllinIllinois has failed as a social media campaign.
3) This money would have been better spent educating bar and restaurant owners, and highlighting those that enforce the rules.
4) This ad tells me that there are so few people who support Pritzker’s stay-at-home, they had to hire cartoon characters. I know that isn’t true, but that’s what it says.
5) Other than that, I loved it.
- Skeptic - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 12:24 pm:
I appreciate the effort, but at a time when the Governor is saying, “what will it take to make this real for you?” I would think they could have come up with something about 1000x more hard hitting and therefore impactful that Saturday Morning Cartoons.
- Flying Elvis'-Utah Chapter - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 12:32 pm:
“at least make an attempt to convince the non-believers”
Please. If a 14% positivity rate and all but 6 counties at warning won’t, what will?
After all the reporting, science, interviews by health care professionals, you really think any PSA is going to move the needle?
Don’t be dense.
- Jibba - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 12:33 pm:
Personally, I’d be advertising a “stay home now to save Christmas” ad.
- Dotnonymous - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 12:43 pm:
They shoulda portrayed a laughing Devil…urging listeners to avoid mask wearing.
- illinois_citizen - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 1:08 pm:
Please. If a 14% positivity rate and all but 6 counties at warning won’t, what will? Preaching to the choir won’t.
- What Do We Do Next - Friday, Nov 13, 20 @ 1:20 pm:
Do many people even watch the commercials any more?
And for those discussing $$$$, please note:
“Like other coronavirus-related expenses, costs are reimbursable by the federal government.”