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| Census Bureau previews its 2010 Asian advertising campaign |
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LOS ANGELES, Calif. – The U.S. Census Bureau and its Los Angeles regional census center today previewed the national Asian advertising campaign for the 2010 Census, which seeks to boost the national mail-back participation rate by increasing awareness and educating the public about the importance of participating in the once-a-decade headcount. “One of the primary goals for our advertising and outreach campaign is to increase the number of people who mail back their forms when they arrive in March,” Census Bureau Director Robert M. Groves said. “For each percentage point increase in the national mail-back response rate, the Census Bureau saves taxpayers about $80 to $90 million in costs associated with having to send census takers to non-responding households for in-person interviews.” With ads produced in an unprecedented 28 languages, 13 of which are Asian-languages, the 2010 Census advertising campaign will reach the average person 42 times with messages around the importance of participating in the census. More than half of the budgeted advertising will be targeted to media consumed by minority and ethnic audiences. In addition to previewing the Asian Advertising Campaign, the Census Bureau highlighted the Mobile Road Tour, which is a part of the largest civic outreach and awareness campaign in U.S. history. Lynne Choy Uyeda-Gin, media specialist for the Census Bureau in Los Angeles, said, “More than 3 million people will have the opportunity to share their photos and stories and explain why the census will make a difference in their communities. With the help of our road tour bus, nicknamed ‘Confidential’, our goal is to capture the changing ‘Portrait of America’ at our road tour stops and events.” The 2010 Census is a count of everyone living in the United States and is mandated by the U.S. Constitution. Census data are used to apportion congressional seats to states, to distribute more than $400 billion in federal funds to tribal, state and local governments each year and to make decisions about what community services to provide. The 2010 Census form will be one of the shortest in U.S. history, consisting of 10 questions, taking about 10 minutes to complete. Strict confidentiality laws protect the respondents and the information they provide. “The 2010 Census is important, easy and safe,” Groves said. “When the forms begin arriving in March, we urge everyone to take a few minutes to fill them out and mail them back.” |