WWE Partner With Ad Council To Raise Awareness On How To Prevent The Spread Of Coronavirus

Over the weekend, WWE made the decision to return to live programming for Monday Night Raw and Friday Night SmackDown despite there being 20,601 coronavirus cases in Florida. In justifying their decision, the company said they wanted to provide families with a distraction during the pandemic and they were a brand "that has been woven into the fabric of society."

Now, WWE has partnered with Ad Council to release public service announcements to raise awareness on how to prevent the spread of coronavirus. WWE Champion Drew McIntyre, Kofi Kingston, and Charlotte Flair tell viewers to wash their hands for 20 seconds and to avoid touching your face, among other measures. The PSA then ends with the NXT Women's Champion declaring "Together, we can help slow the spread." 

A link to coronavirus.gov is also included, which provides people with recommendations as to how they can stop the virus from spreading. However, by taping Raw and SmackDown live, WWE is failing to adhere to one of the key guidelines they are promoting which is that people should "stay home as much as possible." 

WWE Community released the following statement: 

"As an extension of Ad Council's ongoing efforts to ensure the American public is receiving critical and vetted information during the COVID-19 pandemic, the national nonprofit has partnered with WWE to launch a new suite of PSAs featuring WWE Champion Drew McIntyre, NXT Women's Champion Charlotte Flair and WWE Superstar Kofi Kingston that stress the importance of practicing good hygiene during these unprecedented times.

"'As the days slowly pass and we learn more about the virus, encouraging Americans to stay safe is our duty as marketers,' said Lisa Sherman, president & CEO of the Ad Council. 'Our partners at WWE have been by our side to educate Americans on many issues and we're so grateful to them and their Superstars for joining us again now, when so many lives depend on these critical messages being heard.'

"'These are unprecedented times and there is no greater responsibility than providing people with simple, yet important messages that can help save lives,' said Stephanie McMahon, WWE Chief Brand Officer. 'We are all in this together, and WWE and its Superstars are committed to helping support the critical work of our partners at the Ad Council.'"