Melissa Henson

- Acted as the national voice of the Parents Television and Media Council in hundreds of interviews in print, on radio, podcasts, TV and online across major outlets including USA Today, Vanity Fair, Wall Street Journal, Fox News, and Newsweek; shaped national conversations on child protection, media decency, and corporate accountability, helping drive policy awareness and mobilize grassroots support. In 2024 our work was cited in 670 print/online stories, with a cumulative potential reach of over 8.2 billion.

-Led organizational pivot to focus on digital media in children’s lives; including researching and writing studies on streaming media, parental controls, and state efforts to ban cell phones in schools.

-Spearheaded public pressure campaign mobilizing thousands through petitions, social media, and media advocacy, helping reduce viewership and expose teen-targeted explicit content leading to cancellation.

- Invited expert at White House conference on video game violence.

-Researched and wrote report leading to adoption of PTC-recommended parental controls by Netflix and Hulu.

- Led launch of major TV ratings system report with coalition of 20+ organizations resulting in national media coverage.

- Successfully lobbied for federal review of the TV ratings system through budget bill provisions.

-Advanced reform of the TV content rating system, resulting in TVOMB pledging quarterly meetings, increased transparency, and faster responses to public complaints.

-Built and maintained database of more than 300 corporate sponsors, and established relationships with c-level executives leading to face-to-face meetings with blue-chip companies and resulting in changes in sponsorship behavior.

- Mobilized tens of thousands of members to contact corporate sponsors, redirecting millions in advertising dollars away from problematic content.

-Led decade-long advocacy campaign culminating in a Supreme Court victory upholding FCC authority to enforce broadcast decency laws.

- Developed and unified communications messaging across all channels.
- Oversaw creation of PTC blog, website redesign, and social media strategy.
- Launched campaigns to expand public reach of core programs and reports.

- Managed cross-functional team of analysts, editors, and technical staff.
- Designed and executed annual strategic plans and major national campaigns.
- Spearheaded research database development and digital archiving conversion.

• Authored/co-authored 20+ reports with national media impact.
• Produced member newsletter reaching over 200,000 subscribers.
• Ghostwrote testimony for Congressional and Senate hearings.

• Created coding systems for TV content analysis; trained and supervised coders.
• Organized Capitol Hill press events with U.S. Representatives and Senators.

• Proposed and implemented new program structures; promoted to department head in two years.

• Designed and implemented online budget tracking tools for public use.