Updated: November 30, 2009, 8:29 am

Ad Council Honors The Coca-Cola Company CEO Muhtar Kent With 56th Annual Public Service Award

30 Rock's Tina Fey Emcees Ad Council's Annual Dinner

By Edward Callaghan

John Foley, Dylan Roberts and Beth Lawrence of Yahoo! sponsors of the reception. Photos by John Wegorzewski

New York City - Who cannot remember Smokey the Bear and his stern "Only you can prevent forest fires?" Or the military march "Buckle up for Safety, Buckle up"? Well these are just two of the thousands of public service announcements (PSAs) created over the years by The Advertising Council which has a long and prominent history of creating iconic public awareness campaigns on major social issues. Each year The Ad Council honors a leading figure in the corporate community who has distinguished his or herself with their commitment to public service. This year the group honored Muhtar Kent, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of The Coca-Cola Company, with its 56th Annual Public Service Award at the Ad Council's Annual Dinner. "Saturday Night Live" (SNL) alumna and star of "30 Rock" Tina Fey served as emcee of the dinner in the Grand Ballroom of the Waldorf-Astoria on November 19.

30 Rock's Tina fey emceed the evening.

Peggy Conlon, President and CEO of the Advertising Council, Jeffrey Immelt, CEO of General Electric, and Brian Perkins, Corporate Vice President of Johnson & Johnson and Chair of the Ad Council welcomed guests to the cocktail reception which preceded the awards dinner. Some 1,200 prominent members of the media, advertising and corporate communities flooded the rooms for some pre-dinner networking.

Not quick to cut off their business and social schmoozing, guests were finally seated in the grand ballroom and were treated to a rousing performance of "Take Me to the Water" by the internationally acclaimed The Young People's Chorus of New York City - the award-winning youth ensemble which has performed on three continents.

Artistic Director Francisco J. Núñez founded the multicultural ensemble in 1988 with two missions - to foster personal and artistic growth and cross-cultural understanding among children, and to provide a safe haven where young people from many different backgrounds could come together with the common goal of learning and creating beautiful music. The original chorus comprised nine members. Today, the chorus numbers more than 1,100 young people ages seven to 18. It was a splendid way to open the evening.

2009 honoree Muhtar Kent, Chairman and CEO The Coca-Cola Company.

Following the Chorus was a series of iconic videos from the Ad Council's long history of creating powerful campaigns that grab national attention including such memorable ads Smokey the Bear's famous warnings, Buckle Up for Safety, AIDS is Preventable, and Stop Alcohol Abuse.

Then the sharp witted Tina Fey took to the stage and immediately snatched the opportunity for a few zingers at her boss Jeff Zucker head of NBC and Jeffrey Immelt, CEO of GE, NBC's parent company, which is reportedly selling a majority stake in NBC UNI to Comcast.

"My name is Tina Fey and I work on a show that you may have heard of called '30 Rock,'" she began. "I say you may have heard of it because I know from the ratings that you have not seen it. I work at NBC, which is sadly the fourth-place network right now. Actually, we're in ninth place, if you count the couple of radio stations that are ahead of us right now."

"It's a crazy time to work at NBC," she continued. "We keep hearing these rumors that maybe we're going to get bought out by Comcast, leaving all NBC employees kind of nervously wondering the same thing, will I be able to get the Spice Channel for free in my office?"

Referencing Comcast's Philadelphia headquarters, the comedienne commented, "And it leaves me wondering, will I have to change the name of my show from '30 Rock' to 'Industrial Park along the Schuylkill River'?" Loyal company soldier Fey quipped, "Whatever we need to do, we will do it."

Ad Council Board chair Brian Perkins delivered some of the most heartening news of the evening that, "This year media partners have donated $1.8 billion dollars in ad time to the council's programs." And for the not for profit Ad Council there was good news - the awards dinner raised $2.5 million despite the tight economy.

Conlon spoke eloquently on the many successes of the Advertising Council and told the story of Ray, a returning Iraq veteran who despite strong therapy could not shake the effects of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Catching the Council's PSA for the Iraq Afghanistan Veterans of America, "You Are Not Alone," he immediately reached out to the group for the help that saved him. "That speaks to everything the Ad Council does," she noted proudly.

Ad Council President Peggy Conlon and Board Chair Brian Perkins.

A 2008 honoree Jeff Immelt prior to introducing this year's honoree, Muhtar Kent, got off a little payback to emcee Fey - referring to as "employee 970235 in a friendly way of course." He then introduced Kent whom he called " a global leader who embodies the spirit of this award for his work in the environment, health and youth programs."

Kent opened his acceptance speech with a pat on the back for the advertising industry by reading a letter from the then president Robert Woodruff published in the company's 1931 annual report in which he stated "Coca-Cola was 'able to generate a profit that year despite a small decrease in volume. The keys to our success in 1931 were staying committed to advertising and communicating with our consumers.'"

"Strong discipline, respect for consumers, helped the Coca-Cola Company endure the greatest financial crisis in American history, and I think the same lesson applies today. So my message to the advertising community is keep the faith - these tough days are going to pass," Kent said.

As Chairman and CEO of The Coca-Cola Company, Kent has continued and expanded the global company's commitment to public service, providing significant contributions to improving healthy lifestyles, preserving the environment and providing educational opportunities for students around the globe. The Coca-Cola Company has been supporting the Ad Council since 1947.

Barry Frey, Executive Vice President Cablevision and Gerry Byrne, Senior Vice President Nielsen Business Media of Quogue.

The Ad Council has been honoring corporate leaders for their commitment to public service since 1953. Previous honorees include Dick Parsons (Time Warner), Bill Weldon (Johnson & Johnson), Bob Wright (GE/NBC), Ted Turner, Katharine Graham, A.G. Lafley (Procter & Gamble) and our very own Sag Harbor neighbor Ken Chenault (American Express).

Platinum sponsors included Time Warner Inc. and Yahoo! Inc. The Coca-Cola Company, Diageo North America and Printech served as Chairman Circle sponsors.

Following the awards ceremony, Time Warner hosted a lively after party complete with a hot Latin orchestra.

The Ad Council is a non-profit organization with a rich history of marshaling volunteer talent from the advertising and media industries to deliver critical messages to the American public. Having produced literally thousands of PSA campaigns addressing the most pressing social issues of the day, the Ad Council has effected, and continues to effect, tremendous positive change by raising awareness, inspiring action and saving lives. To learn more about the Ad Council and its campaigns, visit www.adcouncil.org.