FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Brooke Manbeck, 215.286.5092
December 13, 2007 brooke_manbeck@comcast.com
Christine Chen, 202-223-9170 cchen@apiavote.org
.
CABLE INDUSTRY AND APIAVOTE ANNOUNCE
“OUR TIME TO VOTE,”
A $5 MILLION NATIONAL MULTI-CULTURAL VOTER EDUCATION AND REGISTRATION CAMPAIGN
Public Service Announcements, Webpage, Hotline and Comcast Foundation grant to APIAVote headline year-long campaign
Comcast, Time Warner, Cox Communications, Inc. and Bright House Networks to support effort
PHILADELPHIA, PA (December 13, 2007) – Comcast (Nasdaq: CMCSK, CMCSA), the nation’s leading provider of cable, entertainment and communications products and services, in partnership with The Asian and Pacific Islander American Vote (APIAVote), today announced the launch of “Our Time to Vote,” a year-long, non-partisan voter education and registration campaign designed to increase voting in Asian American and Pacific Islander communities served by the cable industry.
“Comcast recognizes that broader participation in the democratic process is important for our nation, and we are very pleased to launch this partnership to pursue that goal,” said Comcast Executive Vice President David L. Cohen. “This campaign reflects the cable industry’s commitment to strong local communities and to active public citizenship.”
The outreach to the Asian American and Pacific Islander community, part of an estimated $5 million multicultural campaign, consists of four public service announcements (PSAs), one of which features Asian American and Pacific Islander entertainers, such as Lou Diamond Phillips and Margaret Cho, encouraging Asian American and Pacific Islander audiences to register to vote, as well as the creation and launch of two nationally available voter education resources: the www.ourtimetovote.com webpage and a voter information resources hotline, 1.866.544.VOTE.
The PSA was recorded at this year’s Asian Excellence Awards, and will begin airing on December 15, leading up to the 2008 primary elections in Comcast, Time Warner, Cox Communications, Inc. and Bright House Networks markets. A series of “Get out the Vote” spots will run from September 1, 2008, through November 3, 2008, just prior to the general election. The PSA can be viewed at: http://www.comcastnews.com/Asian2008.wmv.
“The Asian American and Pacific Islander community is critical to the election of the next United States President and other key leaders,” said Congressman Mike Honda (D, CA-15), Chairman of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus. “Supporting APIAVote and launching the ‘Our Time to Vote’ program sets an example for other private, non-profit partnerships.”
“Too few Americans vote and that hurts our democracy,” said FCC Commissioner Michael J. Copps. “‘Our Time to Vote’ is a welcome and multi-faceted campaign to promote citizen participation in the electoral process. It's a real public service."
Additionally, the Comcast Foundation awarded a grant to APIAVote, a national, nonprofit organization that encourages and promotes civic participation of Asian American and Pacific Islanders in the electoral and public policy processes at the national, state and local levels.
The Comcast Foundation grant will assist APIA’s efforts to hire a director to coordinate and implement communications and outreach strategies; to operate the APIAVote toll free hotline; to respond to inquiries and to help address barriers to registration and voter education and to upgrade its website.
"APIAVote is honored to be in partnership with Comcast in 2008,” stated Christine Chen, APIAVote Executive Director. “The Comcast Foundation grant provides us with key resources to enhance our communications infrastructure, which is critical in our outreach to the Asian American and Pacific Islander community. With each election cycle, our community has become an integral part of the American electoral fabric."
Comcast’s overall commitment to diversity is focused in four key areas: attracting and retaining a multicultural workforce, developing a diverse supplier group, offering a wide selection of multicultural programming and pledging significant community investments.
About Comcast Corporation
Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA, CMCSK) (http://www.comcast.com) is the nation's leading provider of cable, entertainment and communications products and services. With 24.2 million cable customers, 12.9 million high-speed Internet customers, and 4.1 million voice customers, Comcast is principally involved in the development, management and operation of broadband cable systems and in the delivery of programming content.
Comcast's content networks and investments include E! Entertainment Television, Style Network, The Golf Channel, VERSUS, G4, AZN Television, PBS KIDS Sprout, TV One, Comcast SportsNet and Comcast Interactive Media, which develops and operates Comcast's Internet business. Comcast also has a majority ownership in Comcast-Spectacor, whose major holdings include the Philadelphia Flyers NHL hockey team, the Philadelphia 76ers NBA basketball team and two large multipurpose arenas in Philadelphia.
About the Comcast Foundation
The Comcast Foundation was established by Comcast Corporation in 1999 to provide charitable support to Section 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations. The Foundation primarily invests in programs intended to have a positive, sustainable impact in the areas of volunteerism, literacy, and youth leadership development. Since its inception, the Comcast Foundation has donated more than $43 million to organizations in the communities that Comcast serves nationwide. More information about the Foundation and its programs is available at www.comcast.com/neighborhood.
About APIAVote
The Asian and Pacific Islander American Vote (APIAVote) is a national non-partisan, nonprofit organization that encourages and promotes civic participation of Asian Pacific Islander Americans in the electoral and public policy processes at the national, state and local levels.
# # #