The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health, and the College On Problems of Drug Dependence (CPDD) will jointly present the 2007 Media Award to John Hoffman, Vice President, Home Box Office (HBO) Documentary, for his role in co-producing the groundbreaking HBO documentary series “Addiction.”

The CPDD’s Media Award is presented annually for meritorious use of the media to educate the public about the science of drug addiction. This year’s award will be presented on Sunday, June 17, at the College's annual meeting in Quebec City, Canada. Mr. Hoffman will be accepting this award on behalf of co-winners, Ms. Susan Froemke and Ms. Sheila Nevins.

Addiction is a 14-part documentary television series and multi-platform initiative revealing the science of addiction, its treatment, recovery, and its costs to families and society. The series includes the main documentary, independent films, a website, web streams, Podcasts, a DVD, and a book. HBO, in partnership with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), developed the series. The centerpiece documentary was seen by more than thirteen million viewers on the cable channel, and can now be seen on HBO’s Web site, www.hbo.com.

Mr. Hoffman, a graduate of Cornell University, has won numerous prestigious film awards including an ACADEMY AWARD, multiple EMMY awards, and Sundance and Berlin Film Festival Awards. He also co-founded the non-profit production company dedicated to HIV education, AIDSFILMS, and he produced several award winning documentaries including the PBS special AIDS: Changing the Rules.

Ms. Froemke is a four-time EMMY award winner. She was nominated for a 2001 ACADEMY AWARD for LaLee’s Kin, an HBO film, and she won a GRAMMY in 2001 for her work as director and producer on Recording the Producers: A Musical Romp with Mel Brooks.

Ms. Nevins received a B.A. from Barnard College and an M.F.A. from Yale University. She is President, HBO Documentary Films. Among her many awards and honors, she has received 17 Prime Time EMMY awards, 24 News and Documentary EMMY awards, 25 George Foster Peabody Awards, and a 2005 EMMY Lifetime Achievement Award. She is a member of the Writers Guild of America and the Producers Guild of America.

The College on Problems of Drug Dependence (CPDD), formerly the Committee on Problems of Drug Dependence, has been in existence since 1929 and is the longest standing group in the United States addressing problems of drug dependence and abuse. It serves as an interface among governmental, industrial and academic communities maintaining liaisons with regulatory and research agencies as well as educational, treatment, and prevention facilities in the drug abuse field. It also functions as a collaborating center of the World Health Organization. For more information about the CPDD’s annual meeting: http://www.cpdd.vcu.edu)

The National Institute on Drug Abuse is a component of the National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIDA supports most of the world's research on the health aspects of drug abuse and addiction. The Institute carries out a large variety of programs to ensure the rapid dissemination of research information to inform policy and improve practice. Fact sheets on the health effects of drugs of abuse and further information on NIDA research can be found on the NIDA web site at http://www.drugabuse.gov.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) — The Nation's Medical Research Agency — includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It is the primary federal agency for conducting and supporting basic, clinical and translational medical research, and it investigates the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.