From All Of Us To You, Thank you.

KINGSTON, Rhode Island - December 5, 2017 - The University of Rhode Island College of Business Administration Social Media for Marketing class is concluding their campaign on Paint The World URI. Through attending multiple events including the Nearly Naked Mile and the URI Basketball game against Brown University, the campaign was able to build its reach and the members of the class were able to personally interact with hundreds of people and discuss the campaign.

Through the interaction at the those events, class participation, and telling friends and family members about the campaign, we were able to build a quick following. We currently have 725 followers on Facebook, 373 Instagram followers and have accumulated about 7,000 views on our various campaign videos. By using a real budget and Facebook and Instagram ad credits, the campaign became a success.

Moving forward, we want to continue to spread awareness on the subject of hate speech and thinking before you post on social media. We hope the people who participated in the pledge continue to act responsibly and encourage others to do the same. We also found that targeting a younger audience whether it be in schools or after school programs could be extremely beneficial for the continuing growth of the campaign. Getting this message into schools and into the minds of younger people is a top priority moving forward.

We are deeming our campaign a success, and hope that our community continues to pause before they post, and understand that the words they use can be harmful to others.

To find more information and see photos from the campaign visit www.painttheworlduri.wixsite.com/website, and be sure to follow us on Instagram @Paint_The_World_URI and on Facebook @PaintTheWorldURI.

About Paint The World URI: Paint The World is a social media campaign initiative started at The University of Rhode Island to combat violent extremism and hate speech. Through commitment to pledging to pause before posting, Paint The World hopes to make the social media community more positive.

Press Contact:

Anthony Manganaro

(508) 838-7295

amanganaro@my.uri.edu