Getting Off the List

TITLE: GETTING OFF THE LIST 8-00-10 (Three Part Version)

ANCHOR LEAD

WHAT'S IN A NAME? WELL FOR COMPANIES THAT WANT TO SELL PRODUCTS AND SERVICES, A NAME IS WORTH A LOT. AND THEY'RE WILLING TO PAY TOP DOLLAR FOR INFORMATION ON HOW TO CONTACT YOU. THE RESULT…ANNOYING PHONE CALLS AND JUNK MAIL. IS THERE ANYTHING YOU CAN DO TO GET OFF THE TELEMARKETING TREADMILL? ___________ REPORTS.

#1 Length:43

WRAP ONE Length 04
FOR SOME PEOPLE, IT'S A DAILY OCCURRENCE.

NAT SOT :02
(Phone ringing)

WRAP TWO Length :11
WHO'S CALLING? IT'S A TELEMARKETER WHO HAS GOTTEN A HOLD OF YOUR PHONE NUMBER-EVEN WHEN IT'S UNLISTED. OR YOUR MAILBOX IS FULL OF CATALOGS TARGETED AT YOUR HOBBIES AND INTERESTS. THIS CONCERNS PRIVACY ADVOCATE RAM AVRAHAMI.

ACT :Ram Avrahami, Privacy Advocate Length:07
"I started thinking, what causes all those organizations to actually have my name and address to send me this information? "

WRAP THREE Length :10
THEY GET YOUR NAME IN A VARIETY OF WAYS…FROM A WARRANTY CARD OR A CONTEST YOU ENTER…AND WHEN YOU CALL AN 800 NUMBER, YOUR PHONE NUMBER OFTEN ENDS UP ON A LIST.

ACT :Chrysanthe Georges, Georges & Murray Direct Length:02
"Lists are critical."

WRAP FOUR Length:05
THAT'S THE OPINION OF ONE TELEMARKETER. WHEN WE RETURN, HOW CONSUMERS ARE FIGHTING FOR PRIVACY.

#2 Length:1:04

WRAP FIVE Length :14
DIRECT MARKETERS PUT YOU IN DIFFERENT CATEGORIES BASED ON YOUR INCOME, INTERESTS AND THE PUBLICATIONS YOU SUBSCRIBE TO. JASON CATLETT, PRESIDENT OF JUNKBUSTERS, AN ORGANIZATION THAT KEEPS ITS EYE ON TELEMARKETING, SAYS PEOPLE HAVE NO IDEA HOW MUCH IS KNOWN ABOUT THEM.

ACT :Jason Catlett, Junkbusters.com Length:15
"In one case, a woman found out that a large list vendor had 900 separate pieces of information about her, down to the kind of hemorrhoid remedy that she used. If most Americans could see that, they would be horrified."

WRAP SIX Length :08
PRIVACY ADVOCATE RAM AVRAHAMI ACTUALLY SUED A MAGAZINE THAT SOLD HIS PERSONAL INFORMATION. HE LOST THE CASE BECAUSE THEY MISSPELLED HIS NAME.

ACT :Ram Avrahami, Privacy Advocate Length:12
"There is a law that protects celebrities from having their name used for commercial purposes. As little as my name is worth, my thoughts were that the law should protect it as well."

WRAP SEVEN Length :05
BUT DIRECT MARKETERS LIKE CHRYSANTHE ("chris-ANN-thee") GEORGES MAINTAIN THAT THEY ARE PERFORMING A SERVICE.

ACT :Chrysanthe Georges, Georges & Murray Direct Length:07
"I would not be in this business if I felt that it was something that was not good to consumers, and it's good for business as well."

WRAP EIGHT Length :04
IN A MOMENT…HOW YOU CAN GET OFF THE LIST.

#3 Length:47

WRAP NINE Length :08
THERE ARE SEVERAL WAYS YOU CAN GET YOUR NAME AND NUMBER OFF OF TELEMARKETING LISTS. JASON CATLETT'S JUNKBUSTERS.COM WEB SITE IS ONE SOURCE.

ACT :Jason Catlett, Junkbusters.com Length:03
"It's a self defense kit against direct marketing."

WRAP TEN Length :08
YOU CAN WRITE TO THE DIRECT MARKETING ASSOCIATION... ASKING TO BE DROPPED FROM ALL OF ITS MEMBERS LISTS. AND WHEN A TELEMARKETER CALLS, SIMPLY SAY:

NAT SOT :04
"Please put me on your do not call list."

WRAP ELEVEN Length :23
IF YOU RECEIVE A CALL FROM A COMPANY THAT YOU'VE ASKED NOT TO CALL YOU…YOU CAN COLLECT FROM 500 TO 1,500 DOLLARS. THE ADDRESS FOR THE DIRECT MARKETING ASSOCIATION PREFERENCE SERVICE IS P.O. BOX 9008, FRAMINGDALE, NEW YORK 11735-9008. YOU SHOULD STOP RECEIVING JUNK MAIL FOR FIVE YEARS, THEN YOU'LL HAVE TO MAKE ANOTHER REQUEST TO HAVE YOUR NAME REMOVED.

WRAP TWELVE
Local Talent Wrap.

LOCAL ANCHOR LOCKOUT

NOW THE F-T-C- IS ADDRESSING INTERNET PRIVACY. IT RECENTLY CONCLUDED THAT SELF-REGULATION WAS NOT ENOUGH TO PROTECT THE CONSUMER ON-LINE AND THAT LEGISLATION IS NEEDED.

TITLE: GETTING OFF THE LIST 8-00-10A (Single Part Version)

ANCHOR LEAD

WRAP ONE Length:02
FOR SOME PEOPLE, IT'S A DAILY OCCURRENCE.

NAT SOT :04
(Phone ringing)

WRAP TWO Length :15
WHO'S CALLING? IT'S A TELEMARKETER WHO HAS GOTTEN A HOLD OF YOUR PHONE NUMBER-EVEN WHEN IT'S UNLISTED. OR YOU RECEIVE CATALOGS AND OFFERS TARGETED TO YOUR INTERESTS. HOW DO THEY KNOW ALL ABOUT YOU? PRIVACY ADVOCATE RAM AVRAHAMI ACTUALLY SUED ONE MAGAZINE FOR SELLING HIS NAME. HE LOST THE CASE BECAUSE HIS NAME WAS MISSPELLED.

WRAP THREE Length :13
DIRECT MARKETERS GET YOUR NAME FROM WARRANTY CARDS… A CONTEST YOU ENTER…AND WHEN YOU CALL AN 800 NUMBER, YOUR PHONE NUMBER OFTEN ENDS UP ON A LIST. DIRECT MARKETERS LIKE CHRYSANTHE ("chris-ANN-thee") GEORGES THINK THAT'S OKAY.

ACT :Chrysanthe Georges, Georges & Murray Direct Length:07
"I would not be in this business if I felt that it was something that was not good to consumers, and it's good for business as well."

WRAP FOUR Length :09
BUT JASON CATLETT, PRESIDENT OF JUNKBUSTERS, AN ORGANIZATION THAT KEEPS ITS EYE ON TELEMARKETING, SAYS PEOPLE HAVE NO IDEA HOW MUCH IS KNOWN ABOUT THEM.

WRAP FIVE Length :12
YOU CAN WRITE TO THE DIRECT MARKETING ASSOCIATION... ASKING TO BE DROPPED FROM ALL OF ITS MEMBERS LISTS. OR YOU CAN DOWNLOAD A LETTER TO THEM FROM THE JUNKBUSTERS.COM. WEB SITE. AND WHEN A TELEMARKETER CALLS, SIMPLY SAY:

NAT SOT :04
"Please put me on your do not call list."

WRAP SIX Length :07
IF YOU RECEIVE A CALL FROM A COMPANY THAT YOU'VE ASKED NOT TO CALL YOU…YOU CAN COLLECT FROM 500 TO 1,500 DOLLARS.

WRAP SEVEN Length :
Local Talent Wrap.

LOCAL ANCHOR LOCKOUT

NOW THE F-T-C- IS ADDRESSING INTERNET PRIVACY. IT RECENTLY CONCLUDED THAT SELF-REGULATION WAS NOT ENOUGH TO PROTECT THE CONSUMER ON-LINE AND THAT LEGISLATION IS NEEDED. YOU CAN LOG ONTO JUNKBUSTERS.COM FOR THE LATEST NEWS ON PRIVACY. THE ADDRESS FOR THE DIRECT MARKETING ASSOCIATION PREFERENCE SERVICE IS P.O. BOX 9008, FRAMINGDALE, NEW YORK 11735-9008. YOU SHOULD STOP RECEIVING JUNK MAIL FOR FIVE YEARS, THEN YOU'LL HAVE TO MAKE ANOTHER REQUEST TO HAVE YOUR NAME REMOVED.

Contacts:

Ram Avrahami
PO Box 53326
Washington, DC 20009
703-908-9125
avrahami@named.org

Avrahami is a founder of the non-profit group called "The Named". For a $25 fee, the group offers to help people get off direct mailing lists en mass. Avrahami sued "US News and World Report" for selling his information to Smithsonian magazine. He caught them by misspelling his name when subscribing to US News. When the same misspelling occurred on unsolicited mail from Smithsonian, he had his culprit. Unfortunately, the misspelling cost Avrahami the case, since a judge ruled it was not technically his name that was sold.

Jason Catlett
Junkbusters Corporation
PO Box 7034
Green Brook, NJ 08812
908-753-7861
catlett@junkbusters.com

Catlett is an anti-direct marketer. He operates a website to help people get off mailing lists. By collecting their own names, Junkbusters then plans to market the list to marketers who want to know what customers do not wish to be contacted. Their free site is www.junkbusters.com

Chrysanthe Georges
Georges & Murray Direct
PO Box 6727 Raleigh, NC 27628
919-836-8822
gmdirect@intrex.net

Georges has several years experience in the direct marketing industry, with campaigns that reach across the country, but primarily the Southeast.

Localization Tips:

See if there are any distance learning schools in your neighborhood (search on the Internet under "Distance Learning."). If there are, interview the Director.
Call your state Attorney General's Office, your Department of Education, and your Better Business Bureau to see if there are any complaints against any of the schools in you area. (Note: To talk about this with the Better Business Bureau, you will first need the address and phone number of the school you are questioning. You can get this from the Internet)
If there are complaints, interview the Attorney General, someone from the Department of Education, or a member of the Better Business Bureau.
Find and interview local former students of the schools. You can request names from one of the above agencies, or get them off the Internet. The Louisiana Attorney General's office is also a good source in information on victims. Louisiana has taken strict action against one of these schools, which has former students all over the country. They are very good about giving out names and addresses of former students in your area.