Thursday, March 12, 2009

Red Nose Campaign Goes Online!

Christmas Day of 1985, Comic Relief, a British charity organization was launched in BBC1's The Late, Late Breakfast Show, in order to raise money to support victims of a famine in Ethiopia. The Red Nose Day is the main way in which Comic Relief is able to raise money. Telethons and other money-raising activities are held on Red Nose Day. The day involves the wearing of plastic/foam red noses which are available in many shops in exchange for donations, to help increase awareness of the charity.

This year, the notable day is due to be held on 13 March 2009. And even before that day, the campaign already went digital, mostly through social networking sites. Social network users can buy virtual red noses and upload a photo with a red nose! Comic Relief was already able to launch their pages on MySpace, Facebook, Bebo, YouTube, Flickr and Twitter.

When Comic Relief first started on BBC One years ago, television was the most effective way of engaging and mobilising people around the country," said Chris Ward, creative director for Comic Relief. "Now in the multi-platform age not everyone is going to be sat watching TV at 7pm. This is about engaging a range of audiences," he said. Already the digital campaign has seen a 100% increase in traffic to the Red Nose homepage and 40,000 have so far logged on to Facebook's bespoke page. -BBC News

Cool. Social networking sites can actually extend the lives of charities! You can even donate through their website: http://www.rednoseday.com/ At present, the Red Nose Day raises money to support long-term projects in several areas (Young People, Mental Health, Older People, Refugees and Asylum Seekers, Disadvantaged Communities, Domestic Violence, People Affected by HIV, Women and Girls, People Affected by Conflict, People Living in Urban Slums, Trade) which help people to help themselves across the UK and Africa.

It's good to see that noble causes make the most out of the technological advancements.

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