American Family Publishers was an American company that sold magazine subscriptions. Founded in 1977, American Family Publishers (AFP) was one of America's leading marketers of magazine subscriptions. AFP was jointly owned by TAF Holdings, Inc. (a subsidiary of Time Inc.) and a group of private investors. It is best known for running

sweepstakes In the United States, a sweepstake is a type of contest where a prize or prizes may be awarded to a winner or winners. Sweepstakes began as a form of lottery that were tied to products sold. In response, the FCC and FTC refined U.S. broadcast ...

in which a large amount of money was offered as the grand prize (in a range of several hundred thousand to one or more million dollars). The winner was chosen at random, by a professional auditing company, from among all who responded to the sweepstakes, regardless of whether a magazine subscription was purchased or not.

History

Originally based in Newark, New Jersey, then

Jersey City Jersey City is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, second-most populous

, New Jersey, the company's tactics attracted controversy, since the mailings that accompanied the sweepstakes promotions, which invariably included a form via which the recipient could purchase magazine subscriptions, frequently included language that seemed to indicate that the recipient had already won a prize, or was a finalist who had improved chances of winning a prize, when this was not the case. In a related phenomenon connected to the company's promotion tactics, news stories reported cases of

elderly Old age is the range of ages for people nearing and surpassing life expectancy. People who are of old age are also referred to as: old people, elderly, elders, senior citizens, seniors or older adults. Old age is not a definite biological sta ...

Americans traveling to Florida (the company, at least for some time, routed their mail through

St. Petersburg, Florida St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 258,308, making it the List of municipalities in Florida, fifth-most populous city in Florida and the most populous city in the sta ...

) in an effort to collect the money that they believed they had won, because of the promotional language contained in the sweepstakes entry forms (for instance, their frequently used phrase You may have already won $10,000,000!, although mitigated by an introductory line that stated "If you have the winning number...," led people to believe that they had already won the major prize). Television exposé have also aired that claim to reveal, through

garbology Garbology is the study of modern refuse and trash as well as the use of trash cans, compactors and various types of trash can liners. It is a major source of information on the nature and changing patterns in modern refuse, and thereby, human so ...

, that the entries of people who did not order magazines were thrown away rather than entered into a random drawing; however, AFP claimed that this came from a misunderstanding of how AFP processed entries at that time. Most of AFP's entry envelopes had windows on the back revealing an OCR code to identify the customer and sweepstakes, as well as any magazine subscription stamps on the entry form. If a stamp appeared in the proper window, the envelope was opened for further processing; if not, the envelope was scanned for entry in the sweepstakes, then thrown away unopened. A separate checkbox below the return address also allowed AFP to process address corrections without opening the envelope. ''

Star Search ''Star Search'' (later known as ''Ed McMahon's Star Search'') is an American television show that was produced by T.P.E./ Rysher Entertainment from 1983 to 1995, hosted by Ed McMahon, and created by Al Masini. A relaunch was produced by 29 ...

'' host

Ed McMahon Edward Leo Peter McMahon Jr. (March 6, 1923 – June 23, 2009) was an American announcer, game show host, comedian, actor, singer, and combat aviator. McMahon and Johnny Carson began their association in their first TV series, the American Bro ...

was the original spokesperson for American Family Publishers from its start and starting in 1993,

Dick Clark Richard Wagstaff Clark (November 30, 1929April 18, 2012) was an American television and radio personality and television producer who hosted ''American Bandstand'' from 1956 to 1989. He also hosted five incarnations of the Pyramid (game show), ...

(who co-hosted '' TV's Bloopers & Practical Jokes'' on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

with McMahon) later became co-spokesperson with McMahon. These claims eventually led to litigation by the attorney general of several states against the company, resulting in court orders requiring changes in the way the company promoted the sweepstakes. The company complied, but increased lawsuits resulted in the company, which was 50% owned by Time, Inc., changing its name to American Family Enterprises. At that time, Time Inc. took a more hands-on role in the business, filing for bankruptcy in 1998.

Competitors

Publishers Clearing House Publishers Clearing House (PCH) is an American company founded in 1953 by Harold Mertz. It was originally founded as an alternative to door-to-door subscription business model, magazine subscription sales by offering bulk mail direct marketin ...

(PCH) was a competitor to American Family Publishers that ran similar sweepstakes. The two companies were often mistaken for each other. Many believe, incorrectly, that Ed McMahon was the spokesperson for PCH. ''

'' host

worked for only American Family Publishers according to a 1992 interview.''

The $25,000 Pyramid ''Pyramid'' is an American game show franchise that has aired several versions domestically and internationally. The show was developed by Bob Stewart. The original series, ''The $10,000 Pyramid'', debuted on CBS on March 26, 1973, and spawned ...

'' host

was a

spokesperson A spokesperson, spokesman, or spokeswoman is someone engaged or elected to speak on behalf of others. Duties and function In the present media-sensitive world, many organizations are increasingly likely to employ professionals who have receiv ...

for AFP as well. PCH remains in business and promotes its products by means of sweepstakes, although it filed for

Chapter 11 bankruptcy Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code ( Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, w ...

in 2025.

References

External links

{{commons category, American Family Publishers
American Family Publishers to Revise Sweepstakes, Pay $4 MillionAmerican Family Publishers Settles Sweepstakes SuitsAmerican Family Publishers Found in Contempt
Companies based in Jersey City, New Jersey Companies based in Newark, New Jersey Defunct companies based in New Jersey Defunct mass media companies of the United States Marketing companies established in 1977 Direct marketing Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1999 Mass media in Hudson County, New Jersey

History

Competitors

See also

References

External links