"Do you know where your children are?" is a question used as a

public service announcement A public service announcement (PSA) is a message in the public interest disseminated by the media without charge to raise public awareness and change behavior. Oftentimes these messages feature unsettling imagery, ideas or behaviors that are des ...

(PSA) for parents on

American television Television is one of the Mass media in the United States, major mass media outlets in the United States. In 2011, 96.7% of households owned television sets; about 114,200,000 American households owned at least one television set each in August ...

from the late 1960s through the late 1990s. Accompanied by a time announcement, this phrase is typically used as a direct introduction for the originating station's late-evening newscast, typically at either 10:00 p.m. or 11:00 p.m.

History

While the phrase itself had appeared in newspapers as early as the 19th century, usage of it in broadcasting started in the early 1960s following the enactment of nightly youth curfews for minors in multiple large cities. When proposing a nightly youth curfew in the state in early 1961, Massachusetts state senator William X. Wall urged all radio and television broadcasters to ask the question on air, so as to remind parents to check up on their children. The first high-profile usage of the phrase was by KHJ-TV (KCAL-TV channel 9 ) in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

in 1964, which had the question read on-air by booth announcers during the nightly 10:00 p.m. station break. Following the adoption of a 10:30 p.m. curfew in

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

WJZ-TV WJZ-TV (channel 13) is a television station in Baltimore, Maryland, United States, serving as the market's CBS outlet. It is owned and operated by the network's CBS News and Stations division, and maintains studios and offices on Woodberry, B ...

(channel 13) began running the announcement at 11:00 p.m. in consultation with the city's mayor Thomas D'Alesandro III; Thomas D'Alesandro III had proposed the curfew while still serving in Baltimore City Council; he became the mayor of Baltimore concurrent with WJZ-TV adopting the phrase. this followed a series of documentaries produced by the station regarding issues facing younger generations and was inspired by positive reception of the PSA on Milwaukee television. WJZ-TV's owner

Westinghouse Broadcasting The Westinghouse Broadcasting Company, also known as Group W, was the broadcasting division of Westinghouse Electric Corporation. It owned several radio and television stations across the United States and distributed television shows for syndi ...

quickly adopted this phrase for other stations owned by the chain, including

KYW-TV KYW-TV (channel 3), branded as CBS Philadelphia, is a television station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It is owned and operated by the CBS television network through its CBS News and Stations division alongside WPSG (channel 57 ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

and

WBZ-TV WBZ-TV (channel 4) is a television station in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, serving as the market's CBS outlet. It is owned and operated by the network's CBS News and Stations division alongside independent WSBK-TV (channel 38). Bo ...

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

WNEW-TV WNYW (channel 5) is a television station in New York City, serving as the Flagship (broadcasting), flagship of the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox network. It is owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division alongside Secauc ...

(channel 5) in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, along with

WKBW-TV WKBW-TV (channel 7) is a television station in Buffalo, New York, United States, affiliated with ABC. Owned by the E. W. Scripps Company, the station maintains studios at 7 Broadcast Plaza in downtown Buffalo and a transmitter on Center Stree ...

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is a Administrative divisions of New York (state), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and county seat of Erie County, New York, Erie County. It lies in Western New York at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of ...

, are two of the more notable stations to have utilized this announcement. WNEW-TV began using the phrase spoken by Mel Epstein, WNEW-TV's director of on-air promotions, in 1967 in response to the rising level of

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definiti ...

in the city; it is still used by the station (known as

WNYW WNYW (channel 5) is a television station in New York City, serving as the Flagship (broadcasting), flagship of the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox network. It is owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division alongside Secauc ...

since 1986) on a nightly basis. During the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, the announcement was adjusted to encourage people to stay home during the pandemic with the phrase "Stay home. Stay safe. Stay strong. We're all in this together." Outside of the United States, it was used at the beginning of the 9pm news on the

Nigerian Television Authority The Nigerian Television Authority or NTA is a Nigerian government-owned and partly commercial broadcast station. Originally known as Nigerian Television (NTV), it was inaugurated in 1977 with a monopoly on national television broadcasting, after ...

in the 1980s.

In popular culture

The PSA was featured on ''Time'' magazine's "Top 10 Public-Service Announcements" list. The PSA was often parodied. The line appeared in the '' Simpsons'' episode " Bart After Dark", upon which

Homer Simpson Homer Jay Simpson is the main protagonist of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons'' who is part of the titular family. Homer made his television debut in the short " Good Night" on '' The Tracey Ullman Show'' on April 19, ...

responded to the television, "I told you last night – no!", and as the

tagline In entertainment, a tagline (alternatively spelled tag line) is a short text which serves to clarify a thought for, or is designed with a form of, dramatic effect. Many tagline slogans are reiterated phrases associated with an individual, so ...

for the 1984 film '' Repo Man'', as well as the 1999 film ''

200 Cigarettes ''200 Cigarettes'' is a 1999 American comedy film directed by Risa Bramon Garcia and written by Shana Larsen. The film follows multiple characters in New York City on New Year's Eve 1981. The film features an ensemble cast consisting of brothers ...

''.

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Michael Jackson, one of the most culturally significan ...

's compilation album '' Xscape'', posthumously released in 2014, includes a track titled "Do You Know Where Your Children Are", which was originally recorded in 1984 by Jackson before his "Bad" sessions, and was reworked between 2013 and 2014. In it, Jackson narrates the events of an underage girl who undergoes

child sexual abuse Child sexual abuse (CSA), also called child molestation, is a form of child abuse in which an adult or older adolescent uses a child for sexual stimulation. Forms of child sexual abuse include engaging in Human sexual activity, sexual activit ...

and

neglect In the context of caregiving, neglect is a form of abuse where the perpetrator, who is responsible for caring for someone who is unable to care for themselves, fails to do so. It can be a result of carelessness, indifference, or unwillingness and ...

Notes

References

External links

Public Service Announcement - It's 10PM Do You Know Where Your Children Are?

Do You Know Where Your Children Are?- PSA from 1979
- with

Grace Jones Grace Beverly Jones (born 19 May 1948) is a Jamaican singer, songwriter, model and actress. She began her Model (person), modelling career in New York State, then in Paris, working for fashion houses such as Yves Saint Laurent (brand), Yves St ...

Do You Know Where Your Children Are?- PSA from 1984
- with

Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (;''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''"Warhol" born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director and producer. A leading figure in the pop art movement, Warhol ...

FOX/WNYW's Earl Monroe PSA from 1986

It's 11PM Do You Know Where Your Children Are?-WKBW version, circa 1988.
- voiced by Tom Jolls
It's 11:00 Do You Know Where Your Children Are
- featured on ''

The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening, James L. Brooks and Sam Simon for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a Satire (film and television), satirical depiction of American life ...

''
Michael Jackson - Do You Know Where Your Children Are
from ''Xscape'' (album) {{DEFAULTSORT:Do You Know Where Your Children Are? Public service announcements of the United States Culture of New York City Culture of Buffalo, New York Child safety English phrases 1964 quotations American advertising slogans Quotations from television Articles titled with a question