Teletón is a charity event held in

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

on a yearly basis since 1978. It is usually held during the first week of December, unless a political election occurs at the same time. The major

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

networks hold a 27-hour transmission, to raise funds to help children with developmental disabilities (most commonly

cerebral palsy Cerebral palsy (CP) is a group of movement disorders that appear in early childhood. Signs and symptoms vary among people and over time, but include poor coordination, stiff muscles, weak muscles, and tremors. There may be problems with sens ...

) treated at ''Instituto de Rehabilitación Infantil'' ("Infant Rehabilitation Institute") centers of the Fundación Teletón. In Chile, the transmission of Teletón is an event of national unity and, proportionately, the most widely watched telethon in the world. Since the first telethon, over US$286 million has been raised, and 14 rehabilitation centers have been built in the cities of

Arica Arica ( ; ) is a commune and a port city with a population of 222,619 in the Arica Province of northern Chile's Arica y Parinacota Region. It is Chile's northernmost city, being located only south of the border with Peru. The city is the capita ...

Iquique Iquique () is a port city and commune in northern Chile, capital of both the Iquique Province and Tarapacá Region. It lies on the Pacific coast, west of the Pampa del Tamarugal, which is part of the Atacama Desert. It has a population of 191, ...

Antofagasta Antofagasta () is a port city in northern Chile, about north of Santiago. It is the capital of Antofagasta Province and Antofagasta Region. According to the 2015 census, the city has a population of 402,669. After the Spanish American wars ...

, Calama,

Copiapó Copiapó () is a city and commune in northern Chile, located about 65 kilometers east of the coastal town of Caldera. Founded on December 8, 1744, it is the capital of Copiapó Province and Atacama Region. Copiapó lies about 800 km nort ...

Coquimbo Coquimbo is a port city, commune and capital of the Elqui Province, located on the Pan-American Highway, in the Coquimbo Region of Chile. Coquimbo is situated in a valley south of La Serena, with which it forms Greater La Serena with more than ...

Valparaíso Valparaíso (; ) is a major city, seaport, naval base, and educational centre in the commune of Valparaíso, Chile. "Greater Valparaíso" is the second largest metropolitan area in the country. Valparaíso is located about northwest of Santiago ...

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whos ...

Talca Talca () is a city and commune in Chile located about south of Santiago, and is the capital of both Talca Province and Maule Region (7th Region of Chile). As of the 2012 census, the city had a population of 201,142. The city is an importan ...

, Concepción,

Temuco Temuco () is a List of cities in Chile, city and Communes of Chile, commune, capital (political), capital of the Cautín Province and of the Araucanía Region in southern Chile. The city is located south of Santiago de Chile, Santiago. The city ...

Valdivia Valdivia (; Mapuche: Ainil) is a city and commune in southern Chile, administered by the Municipality of Valdivia. The city is named after its founder Pedro de Valdivia and is located at the confluence of the Calle-Calle, Valdivia, and Cau-Cau R ...

, Puerto Montt and

Coyhaique Coyhaique (), also spelled Coihaique in Patagonia, is the capital city of both the Coyhaique Province and the Aysén Region of Chile. Founded by settlers in 1929, it is a young city. Until the twentieth century, Chile showed little interest in ex ...

. During the annual event, local and worldwide stars participate in live events across the country. Teletón has been hosted by television personality Mario Kreutzberger, best known by his stage name Don Francisco, since the first event, aired in 1978. Each year, a

poster child A poster child (sometimes poster boy or poster girl) is, according to the original meaning of the term, a child afflicted by some disease or deformity whose picture is used on posters or other media as part of a campaign to raise money or enlist ...

is elected to become the face of the charity. With the exception of the initial Teletón in 1978, each year's goal is set to be exactly the total amount raised in the previous event, in the spirit of increasing the funds available to the Foundation to account for increased inflation and overall maintenance costs. Up until now, the goal has been reached and surpassed on all Teletón versions with the exception of 1995's, were the final account was roughly 12% short of that year's goal.

Telethons

References

Notes

External links

Fundación Teletón

Asociación Nacional de Televisión de Chile

Oritel
{{DEFAULTSORT:Teleton (Chile) Telethons Recurring events established in 1978 1978 Chilean television series debuts Non-profit organisations based in Chile 1978 establishments in Chile Disability in Chile

Telethons

See also

References

Notes

External links