The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) has joined a national assembly of experts and organizations working on unified action against the COVID-19 pandemic.
It’s being called the COVID Collaborative, and NAB President/CEO Gordon Smith will serve on the collaborative’s National Advisory Council.
The COVID Collaborative is a non-partisan group of the nation’s leading experts in public health, education and the economy working together with associations representing state and local leaders and vulnerable communities to take unified action to defeat the pandemic and sustainably and safely reopen the country.
“Radio and TV broadcasters have devoted tremendous resources to keeping their audiences safe and informed throughout the pandemic,” Smith said. “Now, as vaccines roll out and the nation’s recovery begins, local broadcasters will play an important role in educating and engaging viewers and listeners. NAB looks forward to working with the Collaborative in leveraging broadcasters’ connections to local communities across America to inform the public and defeat the virus.”
COVID Collaborative co-founder and CEO John Bridgeland added, “Having the voice of the nation’s radio and television broadcasters could not come at a more critical time as our country works together to defeat COVID-19 and emerge better and stronger.”
Chaired by former governors Dirk Kempthorne (R-Idaho) and Deval Patrick (D-Mass.), the Collaborative recently announced a “Call to Action Compact” between a bipartisan group of governors calling for a common, comprehensive approach to defeating COVID-19, emphasizing the need for state and local leaders to engage with vulnerable communities to ensure that efforts to defeat the virus are both equitable and effective.
The NAB also recently shared research findings regarding local media’s critical role in educating the public about vaccine distribution. The organization will unveil a toolkit in early 2021 providing the resources, research and messaging local journalists need to effectively educate their diverse audiences.
