Advertising Council 1990 Census Advertising Collection
name: label: Creator
content: Ad Council
label: Names
content: Ad Council
label: Names
content: Castor GS & B
label: Names
content: Mingo Group.
label: Names
content: Muse Cordero Chin.
label: Names
content: Ogilvy & Mather.
topic: label: Topic
content: advertising
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: Collection donated by Census Promotion Office, Bureau of the Census, 1990.
creator: label: Creator
content: Ad Council
setName: label: See more items in
content: Advertising Council 1990 Census Advertising Collection
abstract: label: Summary
content: This collection documents the multilingual advertising campaigns created by the Advertising Council to promote the 1990 Census.
bioghist: label: Biographical/Historical note
content: Since 1790, the Department of Commerce has conducted a decennial Census to document the demographic characteristics of the American population, and to establish the proportional distribution of political representation . For the 1990 Census, advertising agencies under the aegis of the Advertising Council volunteered their creative efforts to promote the United States Census through public service announcemnts in newspapers, magazines, and the business press, and on radio and television. 


The full campaign was designed to run from February 1 through April 7, 1990. The "blitz run" period ran from March 4 through April 7, 1990. The collection consists of proof sheets, storyboards, video tapes, audio reels and an introductory letter from Secretary of Commerce Robert Mosbacher. The volunteer agencies were The Mingo Group, Castor GS & B, Muse Cordero Chin, and Ogilvy & Mather. Slogans for the campaign included "Answer the Census. It Counts for More Than You Think", "Stand Right Up. Answer the Census", "Any Way We Add It - It Makes Good Sense to Answer the Census", and "Esta Es La Nuestra! Participe En El Censo". To reach the broadest audience possible, ads were created in English, Spanish (including dislects in Puerto Rican, Mexican, Cuban and Nortera), Cambodian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Laotian and Vietnamese.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 2 Cubic feet (3 boxes)
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1990
custodhist: label: Ownership and Custodial History
content: These materials were donated to the Center for Advertising history by the Census Promotion Office of the Bureau of the Census.
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives Center, National Museum of American History
identifier: label: Identifier
content: NMAH.AC.0372
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Audiotapes
label: Type
content: Videotapes
label: Type
content: Advertisements
label: Type
content: Tear sheets
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: Materials in this collection have been arranged alphabetically by the title of the advertising campaign.
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: This collection was processed by Mimi L. Minnick, archivist, 1990.  Additional processing completed by Miles Lawlor; supervised by Alison Oswald, archivist, August 2019.
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Audiotapes
label: Genre/Form
content: Videotapes
label: Genre/Form
content: Advertisements -- 1950-2000
label: Genre/Form
content: Tear sheets
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: This collection consists of advertising materials produced to promote the 1990 census.  It contains proof sheets, correspondence, three quarter inch videotapes, and storyboards.
relatedmaterial: label: Related Materials
content: National Museum of American History

Division of Political and Military History (now Division of Political and Military History)

The Division of Political and Military History holds posters, pins, and three-dimensional objects promoting the 1990 Census.