Contact: Brenda Flores-Dollar
Phone: (512) 486-5904
 

November 24, 2008

 

Don’t Mess with Texas Superheroes Reel in Litterers with New TV Spot, Kick-Off City Tour

Research shows Litter Force teaching kids to tell others not to litter

(AUSTIN, Texas)—Metropolis may have Superman, but Texas schoolchildren have their own evil-fighting team coming to their TV sets and to their school’s cafeteria.

Hawk, Bolt, Ultra and K-900 are superheroes — the Litter Force — who help children understand what litter is and learn about litter prevention. Litter Force is a Don’t Mess with Texas campaign by the Texas Department of Transportation aimed at teaching children not to litter. This fall, they will make their way to 50 Texas schools with a litter prevention message during a three-month tour.

“The Litter Force is designed to keep kids from ever starting a littering habit,” said Doris Howdeshell, Travel Information Division Director for TxDOT. “It’s already working. Research of first-graders from our pilot markets shows nearly twice as many kids now know Don’t Mess with Texas means ‘don’t litter’ versus before they met the Litter Force.”

Research Shows Kids’ Understanding of Litter Problem

Baselice & Associates, Inc., a research organization, conducted a preliminary study in May 2007 to determine what Texas first-graders in pilot markets knew and thought about littering. Now in 2008, a new research study comparing five pilot school districts reveals what those kids have learned about littering since the Litter Force's debut:

  • 94 percent have heard of Don’t Mess with Texas (compared to 52 percent before the Litter Force)
  • 91 percent know the correct meaning of Don’t Mess with Texas, which is “don’t litter” (compared to 50 percent previously)
  • 88 percent know what litter is (compared to 78 percent previously)
  • 68 percent have told someone in their family not to litter (compared to 55 percent previously)
  • 81 percent would tell their parents to use a litterbag (compared to 67 percent previously)
  • 65 percent have a litterbag in their cars (compared to 50 percent previously)

Litter Force Meet Kids on Their Turf

The mascots will visit new schools for the first time this fall and will return to some of the same communities as last year. The statewide tour of Texas cities will continue through December. The tour stops include: Corpus Christi, Bryan/College Station, DeSoto, McAllen/Harlingen/Rio Hondo, Tyler/Longview/Atlanta/Sabine, Victoria and Wimberley/Leander/Round Rock/San Marcos/Cedar Park.

The Litter Force and two of their trash foes — Pop Top (a soda can) and Chipinator (a chip bag) — will travel across Texas meeting students on campus, performing a new interactive play and leaving behind educational materials.

Superheroes Battle Foes in New PSA
The team of animated, litter-fighting superheroes have a set of adversaries called Evil Trash, who are litter personified. Pop Top, Chipinator, Madam Gum and Ciggy Butts try to trash Texas highways. In a new 30-second TV public service announcement airing this month, the Litter Force will show off their headquarters, get the Evil Trash in order, demonstrate their superpowers and motivate kids with their catchy, upbeat theme song. The spot also introduces a new character — a super-sized trash monster, made up of a collection of trash.

In addition to TV advertising and school outreach, the campaign is also supported by an interactive Web site for kids (www.dontmesswithtexas.org/litterforce). It features games, downloadable coloring pages and desktop wallpapers. The Web site also includes a section for parents and teachers. New kids’ games will be added later in the fall.

“These children will become our best ambassadors to convey a litter prevention message to their parents and their classmates,” Howdeshell said. “If they get in the mindset now that littering isn’t right, they’ll carry this message with them as they get older.”

The counterpart to Litter Force is the state’s Gen L-driven campaign, which is aimed at Texans ages 16 to 24. Research shows that Gen L, or Generation Litterer, are the state’s worst litterers.

About Don’t Mess with Texas
Don't Mess with Texas has been educating Texans about litter prevention since 1986. TxDOT’s litter prevention program includes Adopt-a-Highway and a grassroots partnership with Keep Texas Beautiful. Don’t Mess with Texas activities also include a spring “Trash-Off,” community outreach, a scholarship and a corporate partner program. For more information, visit www.dontmesswithtexas.org. TxDOT’s goals are to reduce congestion, enhance safety, expand economic opportunity, improve air quality and increase the value of transportation assets. For more information, visit www.txdot.gov.