Canadian stars join forces for Canada For Haiti

The Tragically Hip perform live, Céline Dion and James Cameron appear on Haiti relief special airing Jan. 22 on CBC, CTV and Global

TORONTO, Jan. 21 /PRNewswire/ - A star-studded lineup of Canadian celebrities is coming together in support of Haiti relief efforts. Top personalities from the Canadian music, film, television and sports worlds have signed on for CANADA FOR HAITI, a one-hour, commercial-free special produced collaboratively between CBC Television, CTV and Global Television.

Broadcasting live from CBC headquarters in Toronto, CANADA FOR HAITI's stellar roster includes live performances from The Tragically Hip and K'naan, and features musical superstars Céline Dion, Justin Bieber, Nelly Furtado, Sarah McLachlan, Barenaked Ladies, Simple Plan, David Foster, Chantal Kreviazuk, Raine Maida and Measha Brueggergosman. Hollywood heavy hitters James Cameron, Michael J. Fox, Ryan Reynolds, William Shatner, Rachelle Lefevre, Joshua Jackson, Pamela Anderson, Jason Reitman, Eugene Levy, Norman Jewison, Tom Jackson, Will Arnett and Sandra Oh have signed on, joined by television stars Brent Butt, Hugh Dillon, Mike Holmes, Rick Mercer and Alex Trebek and humanitarian Craig Kielburger. MVPs Steve Nash and Wayne Gretzky will be participating, and Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Governor-General Michaelle Jean will also have special messages for Canadians.

Canadians can show their support by donating:

    -   Online at CanadaForHaiti.com
    -   Toll-free at 1-877-51-HAITI (42484)
    -   Text AID to 45678 (carrier charges may apply)

Funds will go towards a coalition of Canadian NGOs, including Canadian Red Cross Society, Care Canada, Free the Children, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam Quebec, Plan Canada, Save the Children Canada, UNICEF Canada and World Vision Canada.

CANADA FOR HAITI is hosted by Cheryl Hickey, Ben Mulroney and George Stroumboulopoulos, and broadcasts live on Friday, Jan. 22 at 7 p.m. ET/PT, 8 p.m. AT/MT, 8:30 p.m. NT, 9 p.m. CT on CBC Television, CTV, Global Television, MTV, MuchMusic, and National Geographic Channel.

CBC Television, CTV, Global Television, MTV, MuchMusic, and National Geographic Channel will also simulcast HOPE FOR HAITI NOW, a special live, commercial-free earthquake relief telethon at 7 p.m. CT, 8 p.m. ET/PT, 9 p.m. MT/AT, 9:30 p.m. NT. The specials will also simulcast on Canadian Forces Radio and Television reaching Canadian Forces abroad.

Canadians can also tune in on the radio and on the web. CBC Radio 2 will broadcast CANADA FOR HAITI and HOPE FOR HAITI NOW starting at 7 p.m. ET/PT/CT, 8 p.m. MT/AT, 8:30 NT, hosted by Garvia Bailey. Go to CBC.ca/frequency for local station information. CBC.ca, CTV.ca, GlobalTV.com and MuchMusic.com will stream a live video feed of CANADA FOR HAITI online. CBC.ca, CTV.ca, GlobalTV.com and MTV.ca and will carry a live stream of HOPE FOR HAITI NOW.

CBC/Radio-Canada is Canada's national public broadcaster and one of its largest cultural institutions. With 28 services offered on Radio, Television, the Internet, satellite radio, digital audio, as well as through its record and music distribution service and wireless WAP and SMS messaging services, CBC/Radio-Canada is available how, where, and when Canadians want it. More information about CBC can be found on the network's website at www.cbc.ca.

CTV, Canada's Olympic Network, is also Canada's largest private broadcaster. Featuring a wide range of quality news, sports, information, and entertainment programming, CTV is Canada's most-watched television network. CTV Inc. also owns radio stations across the country and owns or has interests in leading national specialty channels, featuring news, sports, factual, arts, entertainment, music, youth and fashion programming. CTV Inc. is owned by CTVglobemedia Inc., Canada's premier multi-media company, which also owns Canada's national newspaper, The Globe and Mail. CTV is the official broadcaster of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games and London 2012 Games of the Olympiad. More information about CTV may be found on the network's website at www.ctv.ca.

Global Television is a Canwest Broadcasting Network. Canwest Broadcasting operates Global Television and eighteen of the country's most popular specialty channels, including HGTV, Mystery TV, National Geographic Channel, Showcase, History Television, Food Network and TVtropolis. Canwest Broadcasting is a division of Canwest Media Inc., a subsidiary of Canwest Global Communications Corp. (www.canwest.com), Canada's largest media company. In addition to owning Global Television, operating 18 industry-leading specialty channels and having ownership in 5 specialty channels, Canwest is Canada's largest publisher of English language paid daily newspapers and owns and operates more than 80 online properties.

SOURCE CTV INC.