FOR RELEASE: OCTOBER 19, 2009

SESAME WORKSHOP USES WHERESMYMEDIA TO DISTRIBUTE CHILDREN’S HEALTH SAFETY CAMPAIGN  

On October 6, 2009, Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit organization behind Sesame Street, used the WheresMyMedia digital asset management system to release four new PSA’s about children’s health safety to multiple Broadcasters. The new spots, featuring Sesame Street’s “Elmo”, are designed to sustain public awareness from its initial WheresMyMedia –powered campaign launch on September 1^st, following President Obama’s press conference on Swine Flu prevention.   

The children’s health safety public awareness effort started when the federal government tapped Sesame Workshop to aid it its health education initiatives. To launch this campaign, Sesame Workshop created an electronic press kit containing the four original PSAs, and strategically distributed it on September 1^st as an immediate press conference follow-up.

First on September 1^st, and then again on October 6^th, the electronic press kits were sent as an embedded link within an email.  The link contained the PSA’s in Flash format for preview, and two edit system compatible formats for download and program integration.  Almost immediately after the first four PSA’s were sent, footage of Elmo was visible across several news entities, including CNN properties.

Based on how heavily Sesame Workshop’s Health Safety footage has been repeatedly downloaded, this distribution effort illustrates how timely distribution can be critical to campaign success. Had tapes been delivered in lieu of electronic delivery, reaching multiple Broadcasters at the same key moment would have been nearly impossible to achieve.  Furthermore, shipping physical assets would have cost exponentially more than using the WheresMyMedia D.A.M. system.

“We are so pleased with the results, and the vast depth of coverage we achieved.  WheresMyMedia’s strategy of providing formats compatible with edit systems was a great way to maximize downloads,” said Pam Hacker, Publicist of Sesame Workshop.  Neil DeRosa, SVP Sales of WheresMyMedia sister company Syncro Services, also attests to WheresMyMedia’s strategic approach. “When you don’t know how the video will be integrated, and you’re faced with sensitive timing, WheresMyMedia can turn around several viable solutions in what used to take people days,” said DeRosa.

This children’s health safety effort has been one of many instances in which Sesame Workshop had used the WheresMyMedia system.  Sesame Workshop has digitally delivered press kits the same way for Sesame Street’s U.S.O. Tour and the Families Stand Together feature program on managing economic hardship.  As was the case with Sesame Workshop’s health safety PSAs, footage from the Families Stand Together press kit, featuring Al Roker and Deborah Roberts, was integrated into television programming including The Today Show, Good Morning America, CNBC’s Squawkbox, and various CNN newscasts.  

Aside from public awareness campaigns, Sesame Workshop has also used WheresMyMedia to deliver footage of Sesame Street guests to Broadcasters looking to integrate the footage into other programming.  One of the most popular Sesame Street clips to date, that was delivered by WheresMyMedia, featured First Lady Mrs. Obama discussing exercise and healthy eating habits.
While primarily known for its flagship digital asset management system, WheresMyMedia offers and employs many other tools for maximizing workflow efficiency.  One of its latest innovations is the Telestream Pipeline, which was used to save time preparing Sesame Workshop’s electronic press kit. Unlike the traditional method of ingesting footage prior to transcoding, the pipeline integrates with Flip Factory to simultaneously capture and transcode footage to other formats.  

“As workflow management experts, we are constantly incorporating new tools to achieve breakthrough levels of efficiency,” said William Steele, Partner and Co-Founder of WheresMyMedia.  “Whether it’s the Pipeline, or our D.A.M. that supports uploads of terabyte plus size files, we always strive for improvement and embrace technological change,” said Steele.
Certainly in the field of technology, embracing change is critical to grow and flourish.  However, there is one constant that is unlikely to change, which is WheresMyMedia’s mission to delight its clients.

Contact: Christie Calahan
Partner, WheresMyMedia
Phone (646) 436-8990
E-mail:

About WheresMyMedia
WheresMyMedia equips clients with digital media expertise, optimum tools, and an efficient workflow that is Open Standards compliant.  Founded in 2006 by I.T. and post production professionals at sister company Syncro Services, WheresMyMedia is known for its flagship digital asset management system and automated transcoding application.  To learn more, visit www.wheresmymedia.com.