ABC AND "OPRAH'S BIG GIVE" GIVE AFFILIATES A MILLION DOLLARS AND CHALLENGE THEM TO GIVE BIG AND GIVE BACK TO THEIR COMMUNITIES BY HANDING OVER COLD HARD CASH

In the spirit of the inspiring new reality series "Oprah's Big Give," ABC will be handing over a million dollars to local ABC affiliates and challenging them to give big and give back to their communities. Beginning March 2, on the same day as the series premiere, participating affiliates will be given cash and asked to develop a concept that will transform that sum into even bigger bucks for their community. The goal of the promotion is to see local affiliates do something big with the money, make it grow, and pay it forward to their community. The money raised from the promotion can be donated to an established charity, given to an individual, or a family, it's up to each affiliate to determine how their efforts can best serve their local market.

All ABC affiliates are eligible to participate, and campaigns can start as early as March 2 or as late as March 16. The window for participation spans the entire run of the show, through Sunday, April 20, and ideally each individual campaign will run several weeks.

Participating affiliates will be asked to generate local buzz and publicity for their give-back program through on-air PSAs, news mentions and tie-ins, morning talk show coverage, online editorial and banners, partnerships with other media outlets, and remote broadcasts.

About "Oprah's Big Give" � Sundays 9:00-10:02 p.m., ET/PT

In eight one-hour episodes beginning March 2, a diverse, determined and competitive group of ten people are given the challenge of a lifetime -- to change the lives of complete strangers in the most creative and dramatic ways. In this intense competition, the contestants criss-cross the country, scrambling to find ways to impact the fates and fortunes of unsuspecting people who are in for the surprise of their lives. Fates will be changed in the blink of an eye as contestants race against time to create once-in-a-lifetime experiences and also give away hundreds of thousands of dollars. Who will be the lucky few to get a "Big Give"? And who will get all that cash?

Cast members for this series that the whole family can watch are host Nate Berkus and expert judges including world-renowned chef and philanthropist Jamie Oliver, NFL star and Boys & Girls Club Hall of Famer Tony Gonzalez, and charity founder and wife of Chris Rock, Malaak Compton-Rock.

Executive producers of "Oprah's Big Give" include: Oprah Winfrey, Ellen Rakieten and Harriet Seitler from Harpo Productions, and Bertram van Munster and Elise Doganieri -- the producers and creators of the five-time Emmy Award-winning series, "The Amazing Race."