The Advertising Council, Inc. is a private, non-profit organization with a 60-year history of marshalling volunteer talent from the advertising and media industries to deliver critical messages to the American public. The Ad Council has produced thousands of public service campaigns that address the most pressing social issues of the day. Its icons and slogans are woven into the very fabric of American culture, from Smokey Bear’s “Only You Can Prevent Forest Fires” and McGruff the Crime Dog’s “Take a Bite Out of Crime,” to the United Negro College Fund’s “A Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Waste” and “Friends Don’t Let Friends Drive Drunk.” The Ad Council has received more than $1 billion in donated advertising for its campaigns each year since 1998.

Updated: July 13, 2012