• April 26, 2001

The movie industry has discovered a new marketing strategy. The Newspaper Association of America and the makers of Shrek, the digitally animated film from PDI/Dreamworks, have joined together to encourage kids to read newspapers. Ogre Shrek, and his best friend, Donkey, are the latest characters to be featured in ads from the NAA encouraging young people to read. The ads are timed to run in conjunction with the movie's release on May 18.

"It's great fun to tie in the ad campaign with such a unique film," noted NAA Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer John E. Kimball. "Young people love these movie characters, and showing them with a newspaper is a great way to communicate a positive message about reading. We've gotten great feedback from members about the terrific response they get from running the ads in their markets."

- Anya Khait