SHOP LOCAL RALEIGH AND ABC11 ANNOUNCE PLANS FOR FIRST-EVER VIRTUAL 2020 RALEIGH CHRISTMAS PARADE
Shop Local Raleigh Plans to Continue the 76-year tradition virtually on Saturday, Nov. 21, 2020, Exclusively Broadcast on ABC11 (10 a.m. – 12 p.m.)
Live Stream at ABC11.com, ABC11 app and its connected TV apps on Amazon FireTV, Android TV, Apple TV, Roku
Shop Local Raleigh and broadcast partner ABC11 announce plans to produce a virtual 2020 Raleigh Christmas Parade that will air on ABC11, SATURDAY, NOV. 21 (10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. EDT), and rebroadcast on Christmas Day. Since 1944, thousands of local families have joined their neighbors and friends for the Raleigh Christmas Parade. In one of the largest events of the year, more than 65,000 people watch the parade through Downtown Raleigh in person, and another 250,000 watch from home as a kickoff to the holiday season. This year, ABC11 launched new apps on streaming platforms and viewers will have the additional option to stream the event live at ABC11.com, ABC11 North Carolina news app, and ABC11’s connected TV apps on Fire TV, Android TV, Apple TV and Roku.
Since the parade’s inception, local Raleigh merchants have produced the parade as a way to give back to neighbors and the community. While many things have changed due to the pandemic, Shop Local Raleigh and ABC11 are committed to produce a virtual event for the community that will encompass this beloved holiday tradition. Additionally, the parade serves as reminder to the community to prioritize shopping local and support their local businesses every day and especially during the holidays.
Features for the upcoming two-hour special will include familiar scenes, all uniquely presented virtually, such as special guests, performances and much more – with the promise to have a visit from Santa all the way from the North Pole.
“The event will be like no other Raleigh Christmas Parade we have seen in the event’s history. While this year’s parade will not be held live on city streets, we can guarantee that it will still have pageantry, music, special guests, performances and much more. The event will be sure to entertain and help our community create new memories safely at home” says Jennifer Martin, executive director of Shop Local Raleigh.
“The annual Raleigh Christmas parade is such an important way for the community to come together in a longtime tradition, and also to connect with their local small businesses especially during these times,” said Rob Elmore, president and general manager of WTVD-TV. “Despite the challenges of this unprecedented time that prevented a physical gathering, we are confident that presenting the parade virtually will help in preserving the tradition and delivering a way for the community to still safely experience it.
The 2020 ceremony will air exclusively on Saturday, Nov. 21 (10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.), on ABC11’s broadcast, with a rebroadcast on Christmas Day. Viewers can stream on abc11.com, ABC11 North Carolina news app, and the new ABC11 connected TV apps for Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, Apple TV and Roku.
Thank you for your continued support of Shop Local Raleigh and we look forward to sharing more details about this event soon!!
Jennifer Martin
Executive Director
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About Shop Local Raleigh
Shop Local Raleigh is all about promoting & supporting locally-owned, independent businesses. It’s about making your hard-earned money go further, fueling the local economy, & helping to preserve the unique character of Raleigh.
About ABC11/WTVD-TV Raleigh-Durham
ABC11/WTVD-TV Raleigh-Durham is an ABC owned television station serving the Research Triangle Region of Durham, Raleigh, Chapel Hill and Fayetteville, an area collectively known for its technology companies and scholarly institutions. In 2017, WTVD transformed into a multiplatform newsroom as the first stations selected for the UNC Knight-Lenfest Newsroom Initiative, modernizing the station and maximizing its reach and engagement across linear broadcast and streaming video on demand. ABC11 is proudly the broadcast partner for the Raleigh Christmas Parade, the largest local event in the region, and the news gathering partner with the News & Observer, the region’s paper of record.
