Three Olympics-Centric Press Releases

I keep getting press releases regarding the Olympics so I’ll post these, get to a few more and then call it a night.

First, NBC will air the world premiere of “We Are The World 25 for Haiti” on all of its networks, live in all time zones on Saturday at 2 p.m. ET/11 a.m. PT. Now it can air this live throughout the country, but won’t air the Olympics live on the West Coast. Go figure.

PRODUCER QUINCY JONES AND SINGER/SONGWRITER LIONEL RICHIE ANNOUNCE PLANS FOR MULTI-NETWORK INTERNATIONAL SIMULCAST OF “WE ARE THE WORLD 25 FOR HAITI ” – SATURDAY FEBRUARY 13, 11AM PDT/2PM EST

FANS URGED TO ‘DOWNLOAD TO DONATE’

Downloads and exclusive content will be available on the iTunes Store, YouTube & www.World25.org

AEG Live, FremantleMedia Enterprises and GroupM Entertainment partner to secure International distribution for ‘roadblock simulcast’ of full video on Saturday

Los Angeles, CA (February 12, 2010) - The entire seven minute “We Are The World 25 For Haiti” music video will be broadcast for the first time tomorrow, Saturday, February 13 at 2 p.m. ET/11 a.m. PT on NBC as part of NBC’s Winter Olympic coverage and part of an unprecedented international “roadblock simulcast” on broadcast and cable networks.  

Saturday’s “roadblock simulcast” follows this evening’s world premiere broadcast of a specially created three minute video of “We Are The World 25 For Haiti” which debuted during NBC’s coverage of the Opening Ceremony of the Vancouver Winter Olympics.

“We Are The World 25 For Haiti” is the re-recording of the iconic 1985 philanthropic anthem produced by Quincy Jones and co-written by Lionel Richie.  This contemporary  version, in which Jones and Richie serve as executive producers and producers, was created in collaboration with executive producers  Paul Haggis, Wyclef Jean, Randy Phillips and Peter Tortorici; producers Humberto Gattica and RedOne; and co-producers Rickey Minor, Mervyn Warren and Patti Austin to benefit the Haitian earthquake relief efforts and the rebuilding of Haiti. This production was made possible through financial support from Visa Inc.

An unprecedented 53 United States broadcast and cable networks and over one hundred international networks were assembled by NBC Universal, FremantleMedia Enterprises, AEG Live and GroupM Entertainment to create the network for Saturday’s “roadblock simulcast.” Equally unprecedented was the coming together of more than 85 superstar performers (including Justin Bieber, Miley Cyrus, Celine Dion, Fergie, Jamie Foxx, Josh Groban, Jennifer Hudson, Janet Jackson, Wyclef Jean, P!nk, Lil Wayne, Will.I.Am, Barbra Streisand and Kanye West ) on February 1st in the same studio as the original 25 years earlier (Henson Recording Studios, formerly A&M Recording Studios) to record this new version. 

Haggis, an Academy Award-winning writer-director (Crash, Million Dollar Baby), whose own personal efforts as well as those of Artists for Peace and Justice have already saved countless lives in Haiti, filmed the private recording session to create the accompanying video and “behind-the-scenes” production.

Fans can now immediately download the song and view exclusive footage from the recording session on the official website: WORLD25.org. Downloads are also available on the iTunes Store.  Additionally, through a partnership with YouTube, the video is viewable on the "We Are the World 25" YouTube Channel (www.youtube.com/wearetheworld) with immediate donations made possible by clicking on the "Donate Now" button on YouTube or at WORLD25.org.  

Commented Jones, “It warmed my heart to see that the experience during the recording of We Are The World 25 For Haiti embodied the same enthusiasm, sense of purpose and generosity as the original recording 25 years ago. Every one of the artists who participated, regardless of genre or generation, walked into the room with their hearts and souls completely open to coming together to help the people of Haiti. Through the contributions of their voices to this new rendition of ‘We Are The World,’ and with the help of our partners, the We Are The World Foundation will be the most transparent not-for-profit foundation ever created.”

"When I was first approached about recording a new version of We Are The World, I was lukewarm because the first effort was so iconic, then Haiti happened and I realized that this was the kind of crisis for which the song was originally written,” said Richie. “The new version takes the copyright to a different place while staying true to the iconic nature of the original. What a better way to help rescue our Haitian brothers and sisters in distress, bring a heightened awareness to that country's plight and needs, and bring some of the world's greatest talent together. The result speaks for itself so DOWNLOAD TO DONATE!"

All proceeds will go to the We Are The World Foundation, a newly created not-for-profit organization founded by Quincy Jones and Lionel Richie who have invited Wyclef Jean, Paul Haggis, Randy Phillips, Peter Tortorici and Ambassador Luis Moreno of the Inter-American Development Bank to join them on the board. The Foundation is dedicated to raising money and making grants to charitable organizations with meaningful and efficient relief and development programs that are responding to the continuing crisis in Haiti. Charities are currently being identified whose relief programs best fit the Foundation’s vision of marshalling the support of the community for the benefit of the victims of disaster and poverty. Grants will soon be made and the funds put to work towards charitable and relief efforts. Until then, The Foundation will hold and guard the funds dedicated to this important work.

“I am touched by the enthusiasm and support we are seeing from the entertainment community,” said Wyclef Jean. “With the continued efforts of the global community, we increase our chances of successfully bringing Haiti much needed relief; and taking the next step in reconstructing a 21st century Haiti.”

“Careers are often measured by
 the positive effect of one’s actions on the human condition, not just by the accumulation of wealth,” said Randy Phillips, President & CEO, AEG Live. “When AEG Live and I were asked to help squire this effort by Lionel Richie and Quincy Jones, we knew this would leave an indelible mark on our souls and on the rebirth of the island nation of Haiti. Our mantra throughout the entire process was simply: FOR HAITI!”

Upon its original release, We Are the World quickly became the fastest selling single in history and in the years that have followed, USA for Africa has raised and distributed more than $63 million in revenue from the sales of more than 7 million units of the album, single and cassettes, plus nearly 2 million digital sales  and related merchandise. Just over half the total was spent on emergency relief (food, medicine, and refugee services) and the balance was used to support more than 500 different relief, rehabilitation and development projects in 18 different countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

“We at GroupM are honored to provide our support to make We Are the World a vibrant global platform that shows what the power of creativity, community and media can do to help the people of Haiti in their valiant recovery from this tragedy,” said Peter Tortorici, CEO GroupM Entertainment Worldwide. “We also want to extend our gratitude to Sean Cunningham and the Cable Advertising Bureau for all of their efforts to make this unprecedented Cable Network Partnership a reality.”

FremantleMedia, the company behind the Idol, Got Talent and The X Factor TV brands, has generously offered to work with WATW25 on the international distribution of the full music video to the secure the maximum impact globally and will coordinate its efforts with GroupM, the world’s leading media investment agency group in distributing the video content Worldwide. 
The 25th Anniversary recording will help further the spirit of activism around the 25th Anniversary of We Are the World that was at the heart of the original song and movement. 

Next, here’s quotage from Universal Sports for its preview of the Olympic Games on Friday.

UNIVERSAL SPORTS AT THE VANCOUVER GAMES:

NEWS, NOTES AND QUOTES FOR FEBRUARY 12, 2010

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif., February 12, 2010 — Universal Sports at the Vancouver Games began today, February 12, the first day of the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, and will continue daily until the Closing Ceremony on Sunday, February 28.  The multi-hour programming blocks will originate from sets in Vancouver and Whistler, Canada, as well as from Universal Sports’ network facilities in Westlake Village, California. Below are highlights from today’s coverage.

TODAY ON VANCOUVER OLYMPIC PREVIEW, 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. ET:

Lindsey Vonn update: 

Vonn on the current status of her injury: “It feels good enough to the point where I can try and test it.  Before today (2/11), I haven’t taken any painkillers, so I took those today. I also put some numbing cream on it, which is really helping a lot—I can’t feel it at all.  It was really depressing, really scary, that I might miss the Olympics, but I’m not worried about that now.” Excerpt from reporter Steve Perino’s exclusive interview with her on the chairlift.

Vonn on prior injuries (She was hurt in 2006 in Torino, had a 2009 thumb injury at World Cup, and this one. Perino interviewed her after each one): “It helps to know that I’ve been here before…unfortunately, this injury is more annoying than normal, but nothing is ever perfect.  I wish it hadn’t happened, but it has and I just try to do the best I can every day and find the best solution.”

Steve Perino on Vonn: “When we went up the chairlift, her attitude changed in a good way. She went from thinking ‘I may not get my Olympic chance’ to ‘my Olympic dream may come true.’  She hasn’t been on snow for 10 days…and with the delays has had some extra time to heal, and the more time she has the better off she is.”

QUOTES FROM OUR COVERAGE:

Ski Jumping, Todd Ludwick, U.S. competitor, describing the sport: “What we’re doing on each jump is similar to landing an airplane on a runway.”

Lindsay Soto, on Skeleton: “I think you have to have a little bit of crazy in you to hurtle yourself at 95 miles per hour, going head first.”

Dr. Eric Heiden, who won five speed skating gold medals in 1980. He is now an orthopedic surgeon: “The Olympics and the five medals were a great accomplishment, and when I look back I’m very proud of it, but I’m most proud of what I’ve accomplished in medicine.”

Todd Richards, snowboarding analyst: “As the walls (of the course) get bigger, there’s going to be more and more hang time and other tricks.  Shaun (White) started at age 7, and he didn’t know any better (that he could be injured badly).  I started at age 16, and I knew I could get hurt.”

Snowboard a
nalyst Kenan Harkin: “There’s no limit to the sport, its constantly evolving, and that’s how snowboarding and action sports are set up.”

Picabo Street, Skiing analyst and 1998 Olympic Gold Medalist (Talking about the men’s competition): “Bode (Miller) is coming on, he’s in 4^th gear and about to kick it into 5^th gear.  My money is on him at these Games. I hope he wins here and his poster gets back up on the walls of locker rooms where he belongs.”

Street, on the women’s competition: “Maria Riesch knows that Lindsey handed her that last win, expect that to change.”

Street, on the skiing conditions: “Weather will be a huge issue.  When you add moisture, the snow starts to ‘rot’ and peels the skis away from you, especially for the later skiers. The top skiers will be bunched, meaning their start times will be closest together, when the hill is in prime condition.”

Peter Carruthers, Figure Skating analyst: “Rachel Flatt has the head to handle the pressure, and the work behind her to back it up…expect her on the medal stand.”

Carruthers on Johnny Weir: “He brings a LOT of luggage to these Games…a lot…and he’s almost always on the defensive.  He needs to go on the offensive here in order to have a chance.”

WHAT TO WATCH FOR ON USN – SATURDAY, FEB. 13, 2010:

Tomorrow’s show features a recap of the Opening Ceremony from Vancouver, as well as previews for both the men’s and women’s teams in the following sports: bobsled, figure skating, ice hockey, luge, short track speed skating and skeleton.

FUN FACTS OF THE DAY:

·       Johnny Weir has a large poster of Lady Gaga in his room at the Olympic Village.

·       Vancouver, with 2.1 million residents, has the largest population of any Winter Olympics’ host city in history.

And certain Comcast subscribers will receive multiplatform coverage of the Olympics through On Demand and Comcast.com.

COMCAST delivers multiplatform 2010 Vancouver Olympic games coverage

Comcast On Demand and Comcast.net Connect Customers to Winter Olympics 24/7

What: 

Comcast today announced that it will provide its customers with special coverage of the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games on multiple platforms – On Demand and online – giving Comcast customers the opportunity to enjoy all the action of this year’s Winter Games.

Comcast’s 2010 Winter Olympics experience includes:

Comcast On Demand

On Demand coverage offers recaps from past Winter Olympics, information on this year’s Olympics, profiles and interviews of this year’s athletes and next day highlights during the Vancouver Olympics.  Most content is available in high-definition and includes:  

• Where Were You When – Recaps of past Winter Olympics including highlights from the 2002 Winter Olympics, top five crashes from the 2006 Winter Olympics and the top five performances from the 2006 Winter Olympics.
• Olympics 101 – Fun facts about Vancouver, the home of this year’s Winter Olympics, and America’s top winter Olympians delivering information about this year’s winter sports.
• Meet Team USA – Get a glimpse of Team USA’s 2010 Olympic hopefuls.
• Best of the Day – Get next day highlights including the opening ceremony and all of the games. This offering is available beginning February 12.

Comcast.net

Comcast.net keeps customers up-to-date on the Vancouver Olympics with:

• Live event streaming, video highlights and replays from NBCOlympics.com.
• Video interviews, press conferences and athlete profiles.
• The latest news and results.
• Event previews and recaps.
• Full medal trackers to keep you updated on who’s b
  ringing home the gold.
• Interactive multimedia reports that take you inside the Vancouver Games.
• Slideshows that bring the best images from the Games.
• Blog posts, daily notebooks and features and commentary from Associated Press, Reuters, FOX Sports and Comcast SportsNet.

When: 

2010 Winter Olympics content is now available On Demand and on Comcast.net.  

Where:

Comcast customers can access 2010 Winter Olympics content On Demand via the On Demand menu, selecting “Sports & Fitness” > “2010 Winter Olympics” and online via www.comcast.net/olympics/vancouver/.

This special Olympics offering is part of Project Infinity, the company’s commitment to innovation and the delivery of exponentially more quality content on TV, including more HD. Currently, Comcast’s signature On Demand library offers more than 17,000 entertainment programs and 3,000 HD choices over the course of a month. Comcast’s On Demand library includes everything from movies, music and top TV shows to the most popular sports and lifestyle programs – all available anytime consumers want to watch them. Entertainment content is also available on Comcast.net, and as a benefit of their cable subscription, Comcast customers can enjoy even more access to thousands of titles from the cable channels in their subscription packages at no additional cost through Fancast XFINITY TV. 

That’s it for this post.