Clear Channel Using Humor and Hollywood for Heart Disease Awareness

On Valentine’s Day, millions of women will give candy hearts to their sweeties and doodle hearts in cards, but won’t pay attention to their own tender tickers. Heart disease is the number one killer of adults in America. President Obama has already dubbed February – American Heart Month. In an effort to raise awareness, Clear Channel Communications is releasing a series of public service announcements (PSA) to educate the public about the risk factors of cardiovascular disease  , and how to spot the warning signs of a heart attack or stroke.

Clear Channel, in collaboration with The American Heart Association, has committed one million dollars worth of on-air media to spread awareness. For the next two weeks, a portion of Clear Channel’s 840 radio stations across the country will air a humorous PSA voiced by actress, Elizabeth Banks that highlights the signs of a heart attack in women. Other stations will hear a PSA created by the Ad Council listing the warning signs of a stroke.

This isn’t the first time Banks has lent her talent for heart disease education. In 2011, she directed and starred in the short film, “Just a Little Heart Attack,” for the American Heart Association’s Go Red For Women campaign. The video (below) quickly went viral because it spoke to busy women and mothers across the country who insist, “I just don’t have time for a heart attack.”