May 30, 2019, New York, NY— Earlier today, SeeHer, the Association of National Advertisers’ (ANA) leading movement for gender equality in advertising and media, announced that Emmy-winning TV personality and former New York Giants superstar defensive end Michael Strahan has joined the SeeHer Advisory Board.
Launched in June 2016, the SeeHer mission is to accurately portray all women and girls in media so that by 2020 — the 100th anniversary of women gaining the right to vote—they will see themselves reflected as they truly are. With full support of the ANA, its 1,700 member companies, 25,000 brands that support $400+billion in marketing and advertising annually, SeeHer is the world’s most influential voice for gender equality in programming, advertising, marketing and media.
Strahan joins a powerful group of SeeHer Board Advisors that include journalist and author Katie Couric; actor and gender rights activist Geena Davis; Former WNBA and Times Up president, Lisa Borders; editor-in-chief of InStyle Magazine Laura Brown; and WME literary agent Jennifer Rudolph Walsh. His alliance with SeeHer is an important step forward in the movement’s inclusive message that gender equality is important to all. In addition, SeeHer is expanding its mission into sports, where a respected leader like Strahan helps the movement make tangible impact.
“Michael’s rule #9 – ‘Not if, but when’ – rings true for us and our SeeHer mission to have advertising and programming that women and girls see be reflective of who they really are,” said Fiona Carter, SeeHer co-chair and AT&T Communications chief brand officer. “It’s a not a question of if, but when we’ll see that happen, and having Michael join our movement will help us all get there faster.”
“Since the launch of SeeHer, we have always said that men play a critical role for success in the movement,” adds SeeHer co-chair and P&G Global Brand Officer Marc Pritchard. “To see equal, gender equality must be supported by women and men. Michael’s experience in sports and in entertainment – as well as being a father of daughters – amplifies our vision and will help us reach our goal of significantly improving gender equality by 2020. I am looking forward to working together to make gender bias in content and ads an issue of the past.”
Two-time Emmy winner and Super Bowl Champion Michael Strahan is currently co-host of ABC’s “Good Morning America” as well as “Strahan and Sara.” Strahan hosts the top-rated primetime game show favorite “$100,000 Pyramid” and serves as an analyst of “Fox NFL Sunday,” for which he received a 2019 Sports Emmy Award nomination for ‘Outstanding Sports Personality – Studio Analyst.’ Strahan headlined the new Thursday Night Football Pregame Show live from New York City for the 2018 NFL season. Now partnered with longtime friend Constance Schwartz to form SMAC Entertainment, Strahan brings his skills, determination, leadership, experience and humor to the multi-dimensional talent management, music, branding, and production company. Strahan’s entire 15-year football career was typified by the charisma and sportsmanship that made him a seven-time Pro-Bowler and one of only four players ever to lead the NFL in sacks for two seasons. His spectacular NFL career resulted in Strahan being named to the 2014 Pro Football Hall of Fame class.
From 2012-2016, Strahan co-hosted the top-rated, nationally syndicated entertainment talk show “LIVE with Kelly and Michael.” Strahan and co-host Kelly Ripa were the co-winners of the 2015 and 2016 Daytime Emmy for “Outstanding Entertainment Talk Show Host.” In addition, Strahan was nominated for a 2014 Sports Emmy Award in the category of “Outstanding Sports Personality – Studio Analyst.” Since joining “Good Morning America,” the morning show won the Daytime Emmy Award for “Outstanding Morning Program” two years in a row. Strahan released his best-selling book, “Wake Up Happy: The Dream Big, Win Big Guide to Transforming Your Life,” which includes personal stories and motivational advice to inspire readers to turn up the heat and go from good to great in pursuit of their personal ambitions. Acting on his entrepreneurial spirit, Strahan introduced COLLECTION by MICHAEL STRAHAN and MSX by Michael Strahan, a men’s Athleisure line, which is now also available for kids and has expanded into additional categories. Strahan is also co-founder of Religion of Sports, a diverse, forward-thinking collective of filmmakers & podcasters, writers & designers, thinkers & makers who believe in the power of storytelling to show why sports matter so deeply to communities around the world. The Religion of Sports series “Tom vs Time” received a ‘2019 Sports Emmy Award for Outstanding Serialized Sports Documentary.’
His partnership with SeeHer is the latest effort by Strahan to give back to the community, a commitment he has demonstrated while a football player and now as a TV star. Dedicated to many charitable works, Strahan donates his hands and heart to numerous charities including The USO, HELP USA and Merging Vets and Players. He has also donated his time and celebrity to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, for whom he filmed holiday promotions.
“I am honored to join the SeeHer Advisory Board, says Michael Strahan. As a father of daughters, as well as working with exceptional women throughout my career, I hope my personal experience and knowledge will help bring awareness to the importance of how girls and women are portrayed in media. I look forward to working closely with this group of marketers who are committed to making change.”
“As our mission expands and our influence continues to grow, our advisory board will become ever more critical to our success,” concludes Christine Manna, president and chief operating officer of the ANA. “We welcome our newest board member, who will bring fresh perspectives and insights into our efforts to make women and girls truly see themselves in all aspects of the media.”
About the #SeeHer Movement Despite the strides made to accurately portray women and girls in media, an unconscious bias persists against women and girls in advertising, media, and programming. The Association of National Advertisers (ANA) launched the #SeeHer initiative in June 2016 in a partnership with The Female Quotient (TFQ) at the United State of Women. SeeHer’s mission is to increase the accurate portrayals of women and girls in media by 20 percent by 2020, the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment, which gave American women the right to vote. The group developed a Gender Equality Measure (GEM™) to track progress and the marketing effect of removing unconscious bias from ads and programming. High GEM™ scores directly correlate to improved ROI. GEM™ won the 2017 ESOMAR Research Effectiveness Award. The methodology became the industry standard in the U.S., which led to a global rollout in 2018. For more information, visit www.SeeHer.com, and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
About the Association of National Advertisers (ANA)The ANA (Association of National Advertisers) makes a difference for individuals, brands, and the industry by driving growth, advancing the interests of marketers, and promoting and protecting the well-being of the marketing community. Founded in 1910, the ANA provides leadership that advances marketing excellence and shapes the future of the industry. The ANA’s membership includes more than 1,700 companies with 25,000 brands that engage almost 150,000 industry professionals and collectively spend or support more than $400 billion in marketing and advertising annually. The membership is comprised of more than 1,000 client-side marketers and more than 700 marketing solutions provider members, which include leading marketing data science and technology suppliers, ad agencies, law firms, consultants, and vendors. Further enriching the ecosystem is the work of the nonprofit ANA Educational Foundation (AEF), which has the mission of enhancing the understanding of advertising and marketing within the academic and marketing communities.
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Kristine Surla
(310) 283-7584
