HBO and The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Produce 3Part AntiSubstance
Abuse Television Series Extensive National Outreach Effort Will Support
Programs

NEW YORK, May 22 /PRNewswire/ Home Box Office and
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation have joined together in an
unprecedented partnership to raise awareness about the epidemic of
substance abuse in America. On June 5th, HBO will air part one of FACES
OF ADDICTION, three provocative onehour programs on the scourge of
drugs, alcohol and tobacco in America. The series, two documentaries and
one docudrama, was produced by HBO with a $3.3 million grant from The
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the nation's largest health care
philanthropy.

The three programs will be complemented by an extensive $1 million
community outreach effort targeted to reach thousands of America's
communities and schools. Additionally, HBO will authorize cable and
satellite affiliates to make the programs available to their basic
subscribers.

Outreach efforts include the launch of a FACES OF ADDICTION Web site (
http://addicted.hbo.com) linked to a variety of antisubstance abuse
information, along with the dissemination of a wide range of
instructional materials community action packs, curriculum materials
and a parent guide to thousands of community leaders, teachers and
parents across the country. HBO and The Foundation partnered with a wide
range of national antisubstance abuse organizations in the preparation
of the instructional materials, including Join Together, Community
AntiDrug Coalitions of America, American Council for Drug Education and
Phoenix House. Cable in the Classroom, the cable industry's free
educational resource for teachers, will help disseminate the programs to
schools through its established national consortium of over 8,500 local
cable companies.

HBO and The Foundation will host screening events in 10 cities across the
country for a variety of audiences, including young people. These events
will highlight local community efforts at substance abuse prevention.
Additionally, a significant advertising campaign will support the
programs throughout the summer.

"Drug abuse is debilitating our society," said Jeff Bewkes, HBO Chairman
and Chief Executive Officer. "HBO wants to make a difference, and we felt
that combining our ability to tell the story with The Foundation's
expertise and resources might make a longterm difference. If the
programs motivate even a small part of society to seek help, or stay off
drugs, then they will have been more than worthwhile."

Steven A. Schroeder, M.D., President of The Robert Wood Johnson
Foundation said, "Wherever you live, smoking, alcohol abuse, and the use
of illegal drugs are tearing the fabric of the American family and
condemning entire neighborhoods to live in fear. But there is hope. The
HBO series and outreach activities will help communities fight back."

The first program in the series, ADDICTED, will debut on June 5 at 8:00
p.m. (ET). Hosted by noted journalist Linda Ellerbee, ADDICTED explores
the struggles of more than a dozen Americans dealing with the physical
and emotional consequences of their drug, alcohol and tobacco use. The
impact of their stories is reinforced throughout the show with a variety
of alarming statistics on substance abuse in our society. ADDICTED was
produced by Lisa Jackson.

The second program, FLASHBACK, is a factbased docudrama about a suburban
high school student whose life is torn apart by drug use. As her life
spirals out of control, her mother struggles to help her, finally forcing
her daughter to seek rehabilitation. Later, as the class valedictorian,
she tells her fellow students about her descent into a drug nightmare.
FLASHBACK is scheduled to premiere on July 2 at 10:00 p.m. (ET). The
program was produced by Frank Doelger and Howard Meltzer.

The final installment, 27TH & PROSPECT: ONE YEAR IN THE FIGHT AGAINST
DRUGS, chronicles one community's effort to fight substance abuse on the
street corners and in the schools where drug dealing and use take place.
Filmed in Kansas City, the documentary demonstrates the power of
community action against overwhelming odds. 27TH & PROSPECT is scheduled
to debut on August 6 at 8:00 p.m. (ET). The program was produced by Kirk
Simon and Karen Goodman.

All three programs in the FACES OF ADDICTION series were executive
produced by Sheila Nevins, HBO's awardwinning senior vice president for
documentary and family programming.

In addition to the series' premieres through the summer months, HBO will
reintroduce FACES OF ADDICTION in September, in time for the start of the
new school year. Current plans call for the broadcast of the three
specials during a oneweek period towards the end of the month.

Viewers who want more information on substance abuse and the issues
discussed in FACES OF ADDICTION can call a tollfree helpline,
18007296686. Calls will be handled by specialists at The National
Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information.

SOURCE Home Box Office

/CONTACT: Henry Gomez, 2125121778, or Chris Donlay, 2125121343, both
of HBO/

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