AAF Global

The American Advertising Federation, known as AAF and operating internationally as AAF Global, is the oldest national advertising trade association in the United States, founded in 1905 and headquartered in Washington. The organization represents over one hundred corporate members spanning the advertising and marketing communications ecosystem including advertising agencies, media companies, brand advertisers, digital marketing technology providers, and production studios. The AAF operates a nationwide network of local advertising clubs and federations across more than one hundred thirty cities, connecting advertising professionals at the grassroots level through local networking events, professional development workshops, and student scholarship programs. The organization is best known for the American Advertising Awards competition, formerly called the ADDYs, which is the largest advertising creative competition in the world with over forty thousand entries annually across three judging tiers including local, district, and national levels. Educational programs include the Mosaic Center for Multiculturalism promoting diversity in advertising, the National Student Advertising Competition where college teams develop full advertising campaigns for real brand clients, and government affairs advocacy on advertising tax policy, consumer data privacy regulation, and commercial free speech protections.