San Francisco Teen Chosen as Grand Prize Winner

CAMDEN, N.J., March 3, 2005 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ — Yelena Shuster, a
Ukrainian immigrant from San Francisco, has been selected from more than
40,000 teens as the winner of the $100,000 grand prize in a national essay-
writing contest for high school students, sponsored by Campbell’s Tomato Soup.
The iconic brand partnered with NBC’s “American Dreams” (Wednesdays, 8-9 p.m.
ET) and Scholastic Marketing Partners to provide this opportunity to teens
across the country.

The essay contest asked participants to describe, “How does your American
Dream compare to that of your parents”? The contest was open to teenagers 13-
18 who are in grades 9-12. Shuster received a telephone call today from
Scholastic alerting her that she had won.

“I am very honored to have been selected as the winner of this contest,”
said Shuster. “I am grateful to Campbell’s Tomato Soup, NBC and Scholastic for
their efforts, as the prize money will make it easier for me to work toward
achieving my dreams.”

Shuster’s first-person essay impressed the panel with her rich and
compassionate tribute to her wise Ukrainian grandmother — or “babushka.” A
senior in high school, Shuster plans on studying journalism and English at one
of the several colleges from which she awaits word of acceptance, including
Harvard, Columbia, Wellesley, Stanford, Pomona Colleges, UCLA and the
University of California at Berkeley. What she likes most about “American
Dreams” is the music and “American Bandstand” performances by contemporary
artists who portray classic 1960s icons.

Brittany Snow, who plays Meg Pryor on the “American Dreams” series, will
join executives from Campbell’s Tomato Soup and Scholastic at Campbell Soup
Company’s world headquarters in Camden, N.J. to award Shuster her $100,000
check. The check presentation will be broadcast during the credits at the end
of the March 9 episode of “American Dreams.”

In addition to Campbell’s Tomato Soup awarding $100,000 to the grand
prizewinner, Shuster’s school, Hebrew Academy, will receive one million
Campbell’s Labels for Education(TM) labels.

The essay contest, which launched in August 2004, asked teenagers in
grades 9-12 nationwide to write an essay on “How does your American Dream
compare to that of your parents?” The contest was then mirrored in a storyline
on NBC’s “American Dreams” drama series and was promoted nationwide on
Campbell’s Tomato Soup cans in addition to being part of a Scholastic in-
school educational program. Representatives from Scholastic, NBC and Campbell
judged the entries.

Scholastic Marketing Partners, a division of Scholastic, that publishes
Instructor Magazine, and develops custom supplementary educational materials
for schools, developed a multi-faceted and interactive program that included
in-school and online curriculum for teachers and for students. These materials
were distributed to more than 11 million teens in 60,000 high school
classrooms.

The effort adds new meaning to enhanced, interactive television and marks
the first time that a television program was wedded to a branded product in
such a partnership. The campaign included a cross-promotional effort that
projected the creative storyline into real-time activity allowing “American
Dreams” viewers to both watch and participate. At the same time, teenagers
around the country were benefiting from an in-school curriculum program that
teaches the history of the period while promoting inter-generational dialogue.

“American Dreams” is from NBC Universal Television Studio. Dick Clark
(“American Bandstand”), Jonathan Prince (“Wilder Days”), and David Semel
(“Beverly Hills 90210) are the executive producers.

Campbell Soup Company (NYSE: CPB) is a global manufacturer and marketer of
high quality soup, sauces, beverage, biscuit, confectionery and prepared food
products. The Company is 135 years old, with nearly $7 billion in annual sales
and a portfolio of more than 20 market-leading brands. For more information on
the company, visit Campbell’s website on the Internet at
https://www.campbellsoup.com .

Scholastic Corporation (Nasdaq: SCHL) is the world’s largest publisher and
distributor of children’s books and a leader in educational technology.
Scholastic creates quality educational and entertaining materials and products
for use in school and at home, including children’s books, magazines,
technology-based products, teacher materials, television programming, film,
videos and toys. The Company distributes its products and services through a
variety of channels, including proprietary school-based book clubs, school-
based book fairs, and school-based and direct-to-home continuity programs;
retail stores, schools, libraries, and television networks; and the Company’s
Internet Site, https://www.scholastic.com .

The NBC Agency, founded in November 1999, is a multi award-winning
advertising team that made “Must See TV” a household slogan and reinforced the
term “appointment television” for NBC programming. It is a unique, full-
service advertising agency servicing the advertising and promotional needs of
all NBC-Universal owned entities, which include entertainment, news, sports
and corporate divisions of NBC as well as the cable, Internet and syndicated
properties and brands that the company owns or holds an equity interest in,
such as CNBC, MSNBC and MSNBC.com, Bravo, USA, SCI FI, Trio, Telemundo and
NBC-Universal Television Distribution.

SOURCE Campbell Soup Company

Amanda Brokaw of Hunter Public Relations, +1-212-679-6600 x210, [email protected]
for Campbell Soup Company; Beth Jolly of Campbell Soup Company, +1-856-968-4301,
[email protected]

https://www.prnewswire.com

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