06-01-12 World Wresling Entertainment (WWE) has made great strides in recent years in making itself kid- and family-friendly. With Mattel as its toy licensee since 2010, WWE continues advancing its claim on family entertainment. And come November, the organization follows on the heels of some of the major sports leagues by launching its own cable network, WWE TV. The channel will feature a mix of live events, movies, rebroadcasts, and will be anchored by Legends House, a reality show featuring popular wrestling performers.
Other WWE youth-related initiatives include:
• “WWE In Your Corner” is the umbrella outreach effort encompassing military support, literacy programs, and an alliance with The Make-A-Wish Foundation.
• “Be A Star (Show Tolerance and Respect)” is an anti-bullying initiative entering its second year. Thus far, more than 17,446 individuals have signed the Star pledge, and the Star curriculum teacher’s guide has been downloaded 3,300 times.
• While WWE currently airs on several networks, including USA and TNT; 21% of WWE’s audience is under 18.
• WWE currently airs nine original series on YouTube, and has more than 27,000 hours of content in its digital video library.
• In 2011, WWE received more than one billion views on YouTube, and had 50 million Facebook friends and 80 million Twitter followers.
• Hosts 240-250 live events each year. Uses celebrities such as Snooki and Flo Rida at its live events to attract young people who are not yet fans, and leverages their social media footprints by encouraging them to talk about their experiences.
• An alliance with 20th Century Fox will co-produce and co-finance three to
five direct-to-DVD releases in 2012.
Source: World Wrestling Entertainment, Joe Villa,
1241 East Main St., Stamford, CT 06902; 203-359-5175; joe.villa@wwecorp.com; www.wwecorp.com.
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