Morrison, Michele & GLEE Partner with 'Member Project'

Members Project(R) from American Express and TakePart have partnered with FOX's critically acclaimed, award-winning hit series GLEE on a new, first-of-its-kind campaign that provides fans with a passion for giving back an opportunity to take small steps to make a big difference - all with the lighthearted and inspirational voice for which GLEE is known.

Kicking off today, Wednesday, Sept. 1, the collaboration will feature an innovative mix of original television, online and cinema content written, directed and produced by the GLEE creative team and featuring everyone's favorite GLEE characters. The partnership is designed to elevate common themes shared by both GLEE and Members Project, including finding inspiration by working together and harnessing the power of the collective and individual actions to do something good.

"We are very excited to be able to engage with the incredibly passionate fan base of GLEE, and we hope to inspire even more people to do something good for their community through this partnership," said Nancy Smith, Vice President, Global Media, Content and Community, American Express. "This partnership brings a new dimension to Members Project and the notion of doing good. We expect the GLEE spirit to mobilize even more people to contribute to their communities and create change."

"We collaborated with American Express to develop an initiative with GLEE to inspire people to take action and to make a difference," said Jean Rossi, President, FOX One and Executive Vice President, Sales, FOX. "The partnership is built on the spirit of GLEE's unique brand of fun to encourage people to get involved in anything from arts education to the environment."

GLEE and Members Project have created a broad spectrum of promotional video and online content in the distinctive voice of the series to spark dialogue about doing good versus doing nothing and to motivate fans to take a step toward making a difference. The on-air content directs people to log on to membersproject.com/glee and participate in an interactive quiz to find out if they are more like "Shue" (good through and through like teacher and glee club leader Will Schuester) or "Sue" (bad to the bone like scheming cheerleading coach Sue Sylvester). Participants can follow the conversation between Shue and Sue on Facebook through the Members Project community page and Glee Pages, and learn about ways to take action by volunteering, voting or donating through Members Project.

The multi-dimensional campaign is composed of the following elements:

On-Air

· Members Project Moments: Promotional vignettes featuring "Sue" (Emmy Award winner Jane Lynch), "Shue" (Emmy Award nominee Matthew Morrison), "Rachel" (Emmy Award nominee Lea Michele), "Finn" (Cory Monteith), "Mercedes" (Amber Riley), "Kurt" (Emmy Award nominee Chris Colfer), "Tina" (Jenna Ushkowitz), "Artie" (Kevin McHale), "Puck" (Mark Salling), "Brittany" (Heather Morris) and "Santana" (Naya Rivera) will air on FOX and via American Express' online promotional channels. Each piece points out, "Some people want to do good. Some don't. Which one are you? Find out at membersproject.com/glee and help make the world a better place."

In-Cinema

· In-Cinema Creative: Beginning Friday, Sept. 3, a creative video short promoting GLEE and Members Project starring "Sue Sylvester" and created by the GLEE team, including creator Ryan Murphy and the series writers, debuts in select movie theaters across the country. Moviegoers' experience will also be further enhanced by Screenvision, which will utilize an onscreen mobile platform allowing them to interact with additional content from their handheld devices.

Online

· MembersProject.com/Glee: All videos will direct fans to this site that features an interactive quiz asking visitors: "Are you a Sue or a Shue?" Visitors will have an opportunity to learn more about Members Project and how they can participate in the program.

· Facebook.com/MembersProject: On the Members Project Facebook page, visitors can get a look at the rivalry between Sue and Shue, enter for a chance to volunteer with members of the cast of GLEE as well as learn more about ways to get involved with Members Project by earning American Express Membership Rewards bonus points for volunteering, voting for charities to receive funding from American Express, donating funds and American Express Membership Rewards(R) to a favorite charity and sharing unique content with friends.

· Facebook.com/SueSylvester and Facebook.com/WillSchuester: Fans of the show can also check out the rivalry between Sue and Shue on each character's Facebook page and Twitter feed. Shue will even give fans suggestions on how to give back to their communities. Follow them on Twitter at @S_SylvesterGLEE and @W_SchuesterGLEE.

· MembersProject.com: Here, visitors can learn more about Members Project, an innovative online initiative in partnership with TakePart that empowers everyone to get involved in a variety of ways, including volunteering time at a local organization (both in-person and virtually), voting for their favorite charity to receive funding or donating to a worthy cause.

Volunteer with the Cast

· GLEE Members Project Sweepstakes: In addition to earning American Express Membership Rewards(R) bonus points for volunteering, Facebook users 18 and over can enter for a chance to volunteer with members of the cast of GLEE. FOX will fly 10 winners and their guests to Los Angeles to volunteer with a charity organization alongside members of the cast in December. More details and full official rules are available on the Members Project Facebook page at facebook.com/membersproject.

ABOUT MEMBERS PROJECT

Members Project, an innovative online initiative presented by American Express and TakePart, believes that everyone can help change the world for the better, one step at a time. Whether it's volunteering time, voting for a favorite charity to receive funding from American Express, donating or sharing stories with friends, Members Project enables people to log on and decide how they'd like to take action. Cardmember or not, anyone who is at least 18 is invited to register online at MembersProject.com in order to find out the many ways in which they can do good. Through Members Project, people can find volunteer opportunities that are right for them and get rewarded for their time by earning Membership Rewards(R) bonus points. Everyone is invited to join the conversation and share their Members Project experiences using Facebook and Twitter and #AmexMP to tag their tweets.

ABOUT American Express

American Express is a global services company, providing customers with access to products, insights and experiences that enrich lives and build business success. Learn more at americanexpress.com and connect with us on facebook.com/americanexpress, twitter.com/americanexpress and youtube.com/americanexpress.

ABOUT "GLEE"

Premiering Tuesday, Sept. 21 (8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX, GLEE is a biting musical comedy about a group of eager and ambitious students who strive to outshine their singing competition to win Nationals while navigating the cruel halls of McKinley High that has quickly become a pop-culture phenomenon. Last season's highest-rated new scripted series boasts critical acclaim, a loyal fan base of "GLEEks," two certified Gold albums, more than 10 million song downloads, an incredible 19 Emmy nominations - earning it the distinction of being the most-nominated series of the year - and four Emmy Awards. To top it off, the genre-defying, award-winning series has been picked up through its third season. GLEE is produced by Ryan Murphy Television in association with 20th Century Fox Television. Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Ian Brennan are co-creators of the series. Murphy, Falchuk, Dante di Loreto and Ian Brennan serve as executive producers. Become a fan of GLEE on Facebook at facebook.com/glee and follow the series on Twitter at twitter.com/gleeonfox.

ABOUT FOX BROADCASTING COMPANY

Fox Broadcasting Company (FOX) is a unit of News Corporation and the leading broadcast television network among Adults 18-49. FOX finished the 2009-2010 season at No. 1 for the sixth consecutive year - a broadcast television industry record - while continuing to dominate all network competition in the more targeted Adults 18-34 and Teen demographics. This past season, FOX ranked No. 1 in the November broadcast television sweep, winning by the largest margin of victory achieved by any network in the November sweep in five years, and garnered its first fall season win ever among Adults 18-49. FOX airs 15 hours of primetime programming a week as well as late-night entertainment programming, major sports and Sunday morning news.

Photo Credit: BWW-Staff