Three NBC Shows Go Green

NEW YORK, November 12: As part of NBC Universal's "Green is
Universal" initiative, the series Lipstick
Jungle, Saturday Night Live and Nightly News with Brian Williams have
committed to being carbon-neutral productions.

NBCU will work with consultant Greenhouse Gas Services to measure
and buy carbon offsets for these three TV productions, as well as three
Universal Pictures' films: Cirque du
Freak, State of Play and Funny People. Last summer, the studio's
Focus Features division said its upcoming Sam Mendes comedy would be a
"green" production, using alternative fuels, reducing its carbon
emissions and redirecting 49 percent of waste from landfills into recycling and
composting.

Lipstick Jungle will serve as
a pilot project for the other shows. The initiative includes a recycling
program; catering meals with local, organic produce and baked goods; using
bio-based utensils and plates when permanent plates and utensils are not an
option; avoiding bottled water; using hybrid rented vehicles for transportation
and donating 75 percent of the wood from the set to a non-profit organization.
The show is also considering the use of alternative fuel.

Saturday Night
Live
has begun with extensive recycling, replacing incandescent with LED lights on
set, reducing use of water bottles and reusing or recycling over 1,000 cue
cards per week. The Nightly News
production team has adopted similar measures.

"When it comes to Green, we have a commitment to walk the
walk and talk the talk all year round, not just one or two weeks a year,"
said Lauren Zalaznick, the president of Green is Universal. The initiative,
Zalaznick said, "is just as much about greening our own operations, as it
is to educate consumers through green programming. I am thrilled that a number
of NBCU's high-profile shows and films have joined the cause, and our goal is
to share best green practices across the company."

—By Mansha Daswani