AOL remains busy getting into the TV business. They just announced their reality TV show and now they’ve announced they will be carrying the Tulane versus Mississippi State while running a telethon to raise money for youth sports programs in areas hit by Hurricane Katrina.
The telethon was put together by the Fields & Dreams Foundation, a creation of CSTV Networks along with the Boys and Girls Clubs of America and chaired by former U.S. Senator and NBA player Bill Bradley. They’ve arranged for sports legends and celebrities to answer pledge calls during the game and will have features and segments to share stories of the region.
“Across America, organized sports provide young people an opportunity to achieve athletic and academic dreams, and college sports often represent the best of our local communities,” Senator Bradley said. “The Fields and Dreams Foundation wants to help the children of the region get back on the playing fields themselves, and begin to rebuild their lives, their hope, and their future.”
“So many people have been affected by Hurricane Katrina and we all want to do everything we can for the people who have lost so much,” said Carlos Silva, Senior Vice President for AOL News and Sports. “We hope that by streaming the Tulane-Mississippi State game live on AOL.com, we can expand the opportunities for people to continue to make generous donations to help overcome this terrible tragedy.”
The game is especially poignant for the teams involved. Tulane had their first game, against Southern Miss on September 4th cancelled because of the hurricane. The Mississippi State game should be particularly meaningful. The Tulane team has a tough road this year because the school’s main campus in New Orleans is closed for the semester. The campus itself faired well all things considered but since they get their support from the city, they elected to shut it down. The Tulane players are spending their term at Louisiana Tech.
This is significant for AOL as well though as the continue to advance in their aim for portal power. Right now, the average AOL users spend phenomenal amounts of time with on their site, using their products like AIM and others.
The game will be played in Shreveport’s Independence Bowl on CSTV: College Sports Television with the kick-off slated for 8:00 p.m. ET. AOL will carry the game live from their main site, AOL.com and any internet connection will work.
John Stith is a staff writer for Murdok covering technology and business.
