Refresh of Iconic Logo Modernizes Brand to Better Connect with Viewers in the Digital Age

Arlington, VA, November 4, 2019 — PBS announced today an update to its iconic brand, including a refreshed logo, bold color palette, custom typeface and illustration style. The new identity will roll out throughout 2020 as PBS celebrates its 50th anniversary.

“PBS has connected with hundreds of millions of Americans through the stories that matter to our lives,” said Ira Rubenstein, Chief Digital & Marketing Officer, PBS. “Our new look and feel better represents how we are doing that in today’s digital age, while also preserving the most iconic aspects of this beloved brand. From broadcast to every major streaming platform, from your screens to your communities, we’ve created one connected experience that spans PBS locally and nationally.”

Audiences will see an exciting new look and feel that spans broadcast, mobile, and digital, making it easier to identify and rediscover the PBS content they know and love across platforms. The new logo is an evolution of its iconic symbol, reflective of the diverse perspectives PBS offers through its content. It is paired with “PBS” rendered in a custom type that’s more modern, prominent, and designed to be highly legible as it migrates across platforms. The new brand identity also features a new, vibrant signature color, PBS Blue, designed to convey a sense of trust and integrity.

PBS worked with Lippincott, a global creative consultancy, to elevate the enduring strength of the brand and how it shines a light on the new and familiar to inspire, entertain, and inform. The robust two-year process factored in the diverse considerations of PBS’ audiences, member stations, and partners to ensure a consistent and connected user experience across all platforms hosting PBS content.

“We believe PBS represents the best of what media is capable of, and this brand refresh demonstrates that,” said Connie Birdsall, global creative director at Lippincott. “We built the new visual identity to be flexible and modern for a brand that sits at the center of both broadcast and digital media, providing memorable visual brand cues that highlight PBS programming and unify local and national communities, who all share a love of PBS.”

An evolution of the PBS brand can be viewed here. Over the next year, nearly 70 percent of local PBS member stations will also be adopting the new brand identity, helping to provide a consistent viewer experience.

About PBS

PBS, with more than 330 member stations, offers all Americans the opportunity to explore new ideas and new worlds through television and digital content. Each month, PBS reaches over 120 million people through television and 26 million people online, inviting them to experience the worlds of science, history, nature and public affairs; to hear diverse viewpoints; and to take front row seats to world-class drama and performances. PBS’s broad array of programs has been consistently honored by the industry’s most coveted award competitions. Teachers of children from pre-K through 12th grade turn to PBS for digital content and services that help bring classroom lessons to life. Decades of research confirms that PBS’s premier children’s media service, PBS KIDS, helps children build critical literacy, math and social-emotional skills, enabling them to find success in school and life. Delivered through member stations, PBS KIDS offers high-quality educational content on TV— including a 24/7 channel, online at pbskids.org, via an array of mobile apps and in communities across America. More information about PBS is available at www.pbs.org, one of the leading dot-org websites on the internet, or by following PBS on Twitter, Facebook or through our apps for mobile and connected devices. Specific program information and updates for press are available at pbs.org/pressroom or by following PBS Pressroom on Twitter.

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CONTACTS:

Jennifer Byrne, PBS, 703-739-5487; jrbyrne@pbs.org

Laura Schultz, Lippincott, 212-521-5501; laura.schultz@lippincott.com