COLUMBUS, Ohio - American Electric Power´s (NYSE: AEP) new safety advertising campaign features a mechanically challenged father, a "weekend handyman" and children who learn to use caution when flying kites. The television and print advertisements will appear across much of AEP´s 11-state service territory through the end of the year.

"We´ve injected a human touch into our new safety advertising program that we believe will help viewers relate more to our safety message," said Nicholas J. Ashooh, AEP´s senior vice president of corporate communications.

"The campaign´s purpose is to reduce injuries by urging people to plan ahead on projects or activities that could bring them into contact with electric wires. We want to remind them to treat electricity with respect," Ashooh said.

Inventiva, a San Antonio, Texas-based advertising agency, developed AEP´s safety advertising campaign. The campaign is geared toward children and adults, and it addresses both overhead and underground power line safety. The television commercials were produced in English and Spanish.

In one of the new commercials, a father uses plastic zip ties to repair a sink, a bicycle and a kite. He also guides his child away from overhead power lines to a safe kite-flying area. Another commercial features a man organizing his tools to tackle an outdoor drainage problem. He realizes his most important tool is a telephone, which he uses to check on the location of underground lines before he digs.

American Electric Power owns and operates more than 42,000 megawatts of generating capacity in the United States and select international markets and is the largest electricity generator in the U.S. AEP is also one of the largest electric utilities in the United States, with almost 5 million customers linked to AEP´s 11-state electricity transmission and distribution grid. The company is based in Columbus, Ohio.