Hispanic Communications Network To Produce
Anti-Gang Violence Campaign Funded by the Department Of Justice
Washington, D.C. – The Hispanic Communications Network (HCN) announced today its selection, in partnership with the non-profit Self Reliance Foundation, to produce an integrated mass media social marketing campaign which is funded through a grant from the Department of Justice and targets Hispanic youth and parents on the issue of gangs and youth violence.
Carlos Alcazar, President of HCN, commented: “Latino youth participation in gangs is an issue of growing concern among parents, law enforcement and Hispanic service organizations. We are delighted to partner with the Justice Department and the Self Reliance Foundation to create a campaign that will inspire Hispanic parents and youth to reject gangs and resist recruitment. For those already involved, we plan to offer messages and resources that will raise awareness on avenues available that will help them exit gang culture.”
The campaign will be centered around Latino culture, to provide Latino youth with a sense of identity and pride that can help fill the void that gangs now fill for disenfranchised youth. It will feature an advisory board of experts from government, academia, law enforcement, and grassroots/community-based organizations, along with celebrity spokespersons and resources targeted to parents and youth.
Key components of the campaign will include public service announcements, music videos, movie trailers with an anti-gang message, as well as art and poetry. A new website for the campaign will be created, to include online chat rooms, youth-friendly resource directories, and a toolkit for teachers, counselors, community activists and parents on how to talk to youth about this issue. A toll-free hotline will also be established for parents and youth.
In 1998, the last year for which complete OJJDP data is available, 46 percent of gang members were Hispanic. An estimated 24,500 gangs exist, encompassing 772,500 gang members active in more than 3,330 jurisdictions across the U.S., according to the National Youth Gang Survey Report from 2000.
About the Hispanic Communications Network (www.hcnmedia.com)
The Hispanic Communications Network (HCN) is the largest educational and informational media company targeting U.S. Hispanics. Utilizing an existing radio network, in 2005, HCN expanded into television, publishing and the web. The company has over 200 radio affiliates across the U.S., reaching an audience of 781,700 active listeners per average quarter hour (AQH), and a weekly cume of 5.9 million. HCN's newspaper columns are distributed to 97 Spanish-language newspapers with a weekly circulation of more than 3.5 million. HCN also produces customized, fully-integrated media campaigns for major government agencies, private foundations, corporate clients, public relations and advertising agencies. HCN’s educational campaigns strategically combine media and community outreach to inform and spur audiences to action through its partner non-profit, the Self-Reliance Foundation.
