Stephen Colbert Broadcasts "The Colbert Report" From Iraq in Support of Troops and Public School Classrooms

NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire - June 8, 2009) - Beginning today, Stephen Colbert, host of Comedy Central's "The Colbert Report," will broadcast from Iraq to support, in part, a joint initiative with online education charity DonorsChoose.org. "Support Our Troops by Supporting Their Children" calls on everyday citizens to donate to classroom projects, including anything from basic supplies to field trips, submitted by teachers at high-need, military-serving public schools.

The initiative fuels a fun competition between the five branches of the Armed Forces -- Army, Air Force, Marines, Navy and Coast Guard -- to see which branch's supporters can have the biggest impact on classrooms. DonorsChoose.org estimates that Support Our Troops will benefit 10,000 children of servicemembers.

"To support our troops at home, I've partnered with DonorsChoose.org to raise money for classroom projects at schools around the nation that teach the kids of deployed military parents," said Stephen Colbert. "Of course, I don't believe in philanthropy without a high-stakes competition; so you can make your donation at DonorsChoose.org to a school that serves primarily the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines or Coast Guard."

Added Colbert, "Don't get me wrong, that yellow ribbon magnet on the back of your car is nice and all, but how about ponying up for some pencils while Mom and Dad are away fighting for our freedom?"

At DonorsChoose.org, a Support Our Troops "leaderboard" enables individuals to view the competition in real time and donate to a classroom project in support of their favorite Armed Services branch. Each donation helps the donor's selected branch push forward in the competition.

Examples of classroom projects at military-serving public schools include "But I Didn't Have A Pencil!," a request for basic learning supplies like glue and scissors for students in North Carolina. Another project, "Where in the World...?," will provide an interactive globe and atlases to help special-needs students in California learn about the places where their parents are stationed.

"Clearly we've got a tight race -- we're standing by to see which branch has the most loyal supporters," said Charles Best, founder and CEO, DonorsChoose.org. "We're excited about the hundreds of terrific projects that teachers at military-serving schools have posted at DonorsChoose.org. Many of our troops' children switch schools frequently based on where their parents are stationed, which can present a unique set of learning challenges. The value of these projects in helping to give military kids a leg up can't be overstated."

To view a video clip from "The Colbert Report" in which Colbert explains Support Our Troops and showcases artwork sent to him by children of servicemembers, visit www.colbertnation.com.

To see the Support Our Troops competition progress or to donate, go to www.donorschoose.org/colbertwantsyou.

About DonorsChoose.org

Founded in 2000, DonorsChoose.org is a nonprofit website where public school teachers describe specific educational projects for their students, and donors can choose the projects they want to support. After completing a project, the donor hears back from the classroom they supported in the form of photographs and student thank-you letters.

To date, 94,000 public and charter school teachers have used the site to secure funding for $33 million in books, art supplies, technology, and other resources that their students need to learn. Through www.donorschoose.org, individuals from all walks of life have helped 2 million students from low-income families.

About Stephen Colbert

Stephen Colbert is the host and executive producer of the Emmy and Peabody Award winning series on Comedy Central, "The Colbert Report." Touted by the New York Times as "one of the best television shows of the year" and praised as "The Best Show of the Year" by Entertainment Weekly, "The Colbert Report" has garnered ratings and critical success as one of the top shows on television.

Colbert's book, "I AM AMERICA (And So Can You!)," spent 29 weeks on the New York Times Best Seller List, debuting at and occupying the #1 spot for 13 weeks.

About The Colbert Report

"The Colbert Report" is produced by Jon Stewart's Busboy Productions, Inc. in association with Spartina Productions, Inc. Stewart, Colbert and Allison Silverman are the executive producers with Meredith Bennett and Richard Dahm as co-executive producers. Jim Hoskinson is the director. Lou Wallach and Dan Powell are the executives in charge of production for COMEDY CENTRAL.

COMEDY CENTRAL, the only all-comedy network, currently is seen in more than 91 million homes nationwide. COMEDY CENTRAL is owned by, and is a registered trademark of, Comedy Partners, a wholly-owned division of Viacom Inc.'s (NYSE: VIA) and (NYSE: VIA.B) MTV Networks.

Contact Information: Media Contact: Jeremy Robinson-Leon (ph) 212.784.5702 jeremy@groupgordon.com