Bill Wanger, Executive Vice President, FOX Sports and co-creator of FOX Sports Supports has announced that FOX Sports' charitable initiative 'FOX Sports Supports' is partnering in 2011 with four new organizations through its NFL, MLB, NASCAR and national college football broadcasts.
FSS' 2011 campaign begins this weekend at The Daytona 500 with NASCAR on FOX's partnership with The Association of Hole in the Wall Camps, an international family of camps and programs that provide life-changing experiences to children with serious medical conditions.
Now in its fourth year, FSS is FOX Sports' on-air charitable initiative devoted to raising awareness, providing financial assistance and spurring volunteerism for select health related charities. In January, FSS selects aid organizations for the year and connects each charity to one of FOX Sports' core properties for their season-long partnership.
Through public service announcements, verbal and graphic in-game and/or pregame mentions, the network has successfully raised awareness for worthy charities helping to generate over $3.5 million in donations and over four million online visits for its partner charities.
"Hole in the Wall Camps" is set to begin its partnership with FOX Sports beginning this Sunday with the 53rd running of the Daytona 500 through the network's final NASCAR event in June. During the Major League Baseball season on FOX, the network aligned with "Stand Up to Cancer," an organization that utilizes resources from the film and media industry to support a new model of cancer research.
Once the National Football League season begins, FOX Sports Supports gets behind the Armed Forces Foundation from its regular season kick-off through the NFC Championship Game in 2012. The Armed Forces Foundation provides vital assistance to active and retired military personnel.
Lastly, the network united the "About Dream Foundation" to its national college football events in January on FOX: the Big Ten and Pac-12 conference championship games and the AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic. The mission of Dream Foundation is to enhance the quality of life for individuals and their families battling life-threatening illness.
All four partnerships benefit from on-air public service announcements featuring broadcast talent from each FOX Sports property. The NASCAR on FOX/ Hole in the Wall Camps PSA debuts this Sunday during the Daytona 500 and stars Darrell Waltrip and Kristen Voda and features footage of the late Paul Newman, founder of Hole in the Wall Camps.
Wanger said "Once again, FOX Sports Supports is proud to team up with four tremendous organizations in helping them champion their respective causes. Our hope, as always, is to use the power of the FOX Sports brand and all of its platforms to inform and stimulate all of our viewers to participate in all of these very worthy programs."
Over the last four years, these PSA's have received tens of millions of dollars worth of air time across all of News Corporation's channels helping to support such worthy causes as St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Ronald McDonald House Charities, City of Hope, Malaria No More, and Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research.
