On a map, Memphis, Tenn., and Biloxi, Miss., are almost 400 miles apart. Biloxi sits on the far southern Gulf Coast of Mississippi while Memphis is just across the state line above northern Mississippi. But when tragedy struck residents in central Mississippi, geography couldn’t keep Raycom television stations in Memphis and Biloxi from joining together, […]
On a map, Memphis, Tenn., and Biloxi, Miss., are almost 400 miles apart. Biloxi sits on the far southern Gulf Coast of Mississippi while Memphis is just across the state line above northern Mississippi.
But when tragedy struck residents in central Mississippi, geography couldn’t keep Raycom television stations in Memphis and Biloxi from joining together, along with Raycom stations in Jackson and Hattiesburg, Miss., to assist residents in their communities.
Two days before Christmas, tornadoes touched down in central Mississippi killing five people and destroying more than 300 homes and businesses. One was an EF3 with sustained winds of 125 mph.
On Thursday, Jan. 8, those four Raycom TV stations — WDAM Hattiesburg, WLBT Jackson, WLOX Biloxi and WMC Memphis — simultaneously conducted a special one-day fundraiser, Mississippi Tornado Relief: Hope, Help & Healing, which raised more than $200,000 for the Greater Pine Belt Community Foundation. The foundation will assist with the long-term recovery needs of those tornado victims.
“A great example of what local broadcasters bring to their local communities,” is how Lec Coble, Raycom’s corporate marketing director, described it.
Coble also commented on how the power of marketing “can be used to assist the local communities we work in and serve every day.”
The stations involved shared the need with viewers through news coverage, promotion on the air, online and through social media.
“This is exactly what we believe local television is all about,” said Paul McTear, Raycom CEO.
“We are grateful to our viewers in Mississippi and the Memphis, Tennessee area for coming together and assisting their neighbors in such a large and meaningful way.”
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