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Harnesses Reach of latimes.com to Deliver Public Service Assistance LOS ANGELES, Oct. 25 /PRNewswire/ -- The Los Angeles Times Media Group today announced the establishment of the Los Angeles Times Family Fund/KTLA-5 Charities Fire Relief Campaign, a joint effort by the McCormick Tribune Foundation, The Times and KTLA. For every dollar donated, up to the first $500,000, the McCormick Tribune Foundation will donate an additional 50 cents and, along with The Times and KTLA, will also absorb all administrative costs, allowing all donations and the matching funds to go directly to agencies supporting disaster response and relief efforts for those affected by Southern California's massive wildfires. All interested in participating can log on to http://www.latimes.com/firerelief or call 877-713-0278. Checks may be sent to Los Angeles Times/KTLA-5 Charities, Fire Relief Campaign c/o the Los Angeles Times, 202 W. 1st Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012 "The disaster of these fires brings us together as a community to help our friends and neighbors," said The Times Publisher, David D. Hiller. "So many of us have asked how we can help. Here is a way." In addition, latimes.com is offering both Web and mobile-based assistance to evacuees today via the launch of a "people finder" http://firesearch.latimes.com/. This service-minded site helps evacuees in letting family and friends know where they are and how they're doing, while conversely also providing a place to search for those that may have been evacuated. Traffic is breaking records online where technological innovations paired with The Times unique coverage have drawn millions of visitors to the breaking news blog (http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/breakingnews/). Online users are finding over 250 blog entries (to date) from members of the Metro staff on the front lines of the fires around the region, with up-to-the-minute updates on evacuations, road closures, air quality, fire perimeters, tips on how to protect your home and more. latimes.com is also showcasing reader input via photos and video submitted to "Your Scene" and has logged more than 1400 comments on the message boards. "The breadth of coverage and practical information The Times readers need at this time has placed the site's breaking news blog as our 'center of gravity'," said Meredith Artley, latimes.com executive editor. "It's been gratifying to see the strength of our news operations rally to allow our site to provide practical, minute-by-minute information, engaging our readers and using technology to do great journalism and connect Southern California." The Times circulation enterprise has also ensured that free copies of the newspaper be distributed to various evacuation centers from Santa Clarita and Malibu to Orange County, the Inland Empire and San Diego. Additionally, The Times editorial staff will produce a special section on Sunday, October 28 examining how Southern Californians live and cope with wildfires. About the Los Angeles Times The Los Angeles Times is the largest metropolitan daily newspaper in the country, with a daily readership of 2.2 million and 3.3 million on Sunday. The Los Angeles Times and its media businesses and affiliates -- including latimes.com, The Envelope/theenvelope.com, Times Community Newspapers, Hoy, and California Community News - reach approximately 8.1 million or 62% of all adults in the Southern California marketplace. The Pulitzer Prize-winning Los Angeles Times, has been covering Southern California for over 125 years and is part of Tribune Company (NYSE:TRB), one of the country's leading media companies with businesses in publishing, the Internet and broadcasting. Additional information about the Los Angeles Times is available at http://www.latimes.com/mediacenter. About the McCormick Tribune Foundation The McCormick Tribune Foundation is a nonprofit organization committed to making life better for our children, communities and country. Through its charitable grantmaking programs, Cantigny Park and Golf, Cantigny First Division Foundation and the McCormick Tribune Freedom Museum, the Foundation positively impacts people's lives and stays true to its mission of advancing the ideals of a free, democratic society. The Foundation is an independent nonprofit, separate from the Tribune Co. For more information, please visit our Web site at http://www.mccormicktribune.org/. DATASOURCE: Los Angeles Times CONTACT: Nancy Sullivan of Los Angeles Times, +1-213-237-6160, ; or Catherine Brown of McCormick Tribune Foundation, +1-312-222-4143, Web site: http://www.latimes.com/firerelief http://www.mccormicktribune.org/

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