NEW YORK & STAMFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Creative Coalition and WWE, co-founders of the Be a STAR (Show Tolerance and Respect) anti-bullying initiative, announced today the first-ever Be a STAR grant program that will allocate $100,000 in grants. Four $25,000 grants will be awarded to qualified non-profit public charities that have programs focused on developing and implementing anti-bullying programs.
Be a STAR is an anti-bullying initiative co-founded in 2011 by The Creative Coalition and WWE. Its mission is to encourage young people to treat each other with tolerance and respect through grassroots efforts beginning with education and awareness. WWE, its Superstars and The Creative Coalition leverage the power of The Creative Coalition’s entertainment industry constituencies and WWE’s global brand and platforms to help eradicate the bullying epidemic plaguing today’s youth.
“The Be a STAR program is about taking action to stem an epidemic that is affecting children around the world,” said Robin Bronk, CEO of The Creative Coalition. “We're proud to partner with WWE to give organizations resources to help make a difference in eradicating bullying.”
“Our mission at WWE is to put smiles on people’s faces and we do that, in part, by supporting programs and initiatives that positively impact children and families around the world,” said Stephanie McMahon, Executive Vice President, Creative, WWE. “We are proud to offer organizations tools and resources to help fight bullying, a critical issue facing young people today in schools, communities and online.”
Applications for the grant program are due by Friday, November 1, 2013. For the full grant application please click here. All 501(c)(3) organizations with programs focused around anti-bullying are eligible to apply. Grantees will be formally announced in early 2014.
About Be a STAR
Be a STAR (beastaralliance.org) is an anti-bullying alliance co-founded by WWE and The Creative Coalition. Its mission is to ensure a positive and equitable social environment for everyone regardless of age, race, religion or sexual orientation through grassroots efforts beginning with education and awareness. Be a STAR, which stands for "Show Tolerance And Respect," promotes positive methods of social interaction and encourages people to treat others as equals.
About The Creative Coalition
The Creative Coalition (www.TheCreativeCoalition.org) is the premier nonprofit, nonpartisan social and public advocacy organization of the arts and entertainment community. Founded in 1989 by prominent members of the creative community, The Creative Coalition is dedicated to educating, mobilizing, and activating its members on issues of public importance. The Creative Coalition uses the power and platform of the arts and entertainment communities in award-winning PSA campaigns, mentoring programs, and arts advocacy initiatives on the federal, state and local levels. Actor Tim Daly serves as the organization's President.
About WWE
WWE, a publicly traded company (NYSE:WWE), is an integrated media organization and recognized leader in global entertainment. The company consists of a portfolio of businesses that create and deliver original content 52 weeks a year to a global audience. WWE is committed to family friendly entertainment on its television programming, pay-per-view, digital media and publishing platforms. WWE programming is broadcast in more than 150 countries and 30 languages and reaches more than 650 million homes worldwide. The company is headquartered in Stamford, Conn., with offices in New York, Los Angeles, Miami, London, Mumbai, Shanghai, Singapore, Istanbul and Tokyo.
Additional information on WWE (NYSE:WWE) can be found at wwe.com and corporate.wwe.com. For information on our global activities, go to http://www.wwe.com/worldwide/.
About WWE’s Corporate Social Responsibility
WWE’s global community outreach programs address important social issues, including education, diversity and inclusion, military support and providing hope to those in need. WWE and its Superstars and Divas support a wide range of programs, partners and initiatives that strive to positively impact children and families worldwide, including the “Be a STAR” anti-bullying campaign, WrestleMania Reading Challenge, Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Make-A-Wish, Special Olympics USA Games, Special Olympics Connecticut, Hire Heroes USA and many more. For more information please visit WWECommunity.com.
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Forward-Looking Statements: This press release contains forward-looking statements pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which are subject to various risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, risks relating to maintaining and renewing key agreements, including television and pay-per-view programming distribution agreements; the need for continually developing creative and entertaining programming; the continued importance of key performers and the services of Vincent McMahon; the conditions of the markets in which we compete and acceptance of the Company's brands, media and merchandise within those markets; our exposure to bad debt risk; uncertainties relating to regulatory and litigation matters; risks resulting from the highly competitive nature of our markets; uncertainties associated with international markets; the importance of protecting our intellectual property and complying with the intellectual property rights of others; risks associated with producing and travelling to and from our large live events, both domestically and internationally; the risk of accidents or injuries during our physically demanding events; risks relating to our film business; risks relating to increasing content production for distribution on various platforms, including the potential creation of a WWE Network; risks relating to our computer systems and online operations; risks relating to the large number of shares of common stock controlled by members of the McMahon family and the possibility of the sale of their stock by the McMahons or the perception of the possibility of such sales; the relatively small public float of our stock; and other risks and factors set forth from time to time in Company filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Actual results could differ materially from those currently expected or anticipated. In addition, our dividend is dependent on a number of factors, including, among other things, our liquidity and historical and projected cash flow, strategic plan (including alternative uses of capital), our financial results and condition, contractual and legal restrictions on the payment of dividends, general economic and competitive conditions and such other factors as our Board of Directors may consider relevant.
