Thursday, January 04, 2007

Ok To Play ... PTA and ESRB Video Game Rating System Campaign

PTA joined forces with the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) to launch a national ratings education campaign "OK to Play". The campaign will encourage PTAs to hold meetings to educate parents in their communities about video game ratings, and will be supported on both the PTA and ESRB websites.

The campaign is distributing 1.3 million brochures to more than 25,000 PTAs across the nation to encourage and enable PTAs to educate parents about video game ratings. The brochures are available in both English and Spanish.
"Every parent knows how popular video games are these days, but perhaps not as many are familiar with the tools that can help them select games that are appropriate for their children," said Anna Weselak, PTA national president. "Just as with all media, we urge parents to be as involved and informed as they can. The ESRB ratings are informational and help parents to make sensible video game choices for their families."

PTAs began receiving the informational brochures this week, and are encouraged to distribute them to PTA members through their regular programs and events. Additional information on video game safety and the campaign is available online. Visit the Media and Technology section for more tips on managing kids' video game play, television viewing, and Internet use.

PTAs can help promote the OK to Play campaign and raise awareness about video game safety by downloading banner ads and posting them on their PTA and school websites.

[from This Week in Washington, November 22, 2006 ]