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Roma's Twitter campaign helps to find five missing children

Roma Twitter plea
Image: Roma's campaign has helped to find five missing children this summer

Roma have helped to find five missing children through a social media campaign since its launch this summer.

The Serie A club partnered up with organisations such as Missing Kids in the UK, Telefono Azzurro in Italy and National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in the US by accompanying every new signing's announcement video with pictures of children reported missing to raise awareness of the search for them.

The latest is a 16-year-old child from London, and an eight-year-old girl from Kenya was found after her story was posted alongside a video of Chris Smalling, when his loan move from Manchester United was announced.

Missing People's CEO, Jo Youle, said: "It is fantastic news that one of the young people who was part of the AS Roma transfer video appeal has been found. We are really thankful to our friends at AS Roma for sharing their transfer videos on social media. With the help of their millions of fans, it has raised awareness of missing children and young people to a wide audience.

"Anything we can do to get the word out about children and young people who have disappeared is welcome.

"More than 86,000 children are reported missing in the UK each year, with two percent, or around 1700 children and young people, remaining missing for longer than a week.

"As well as sharing appeals through the media, on our website and via social media, Missing People provides free, confidential specialist support through our helpline which is available 24 hours a day, and we also support missing children and adults, and their loved ones, who are left behind using text and email."

The inspiration behind Roma's campaign comes from rock band Soul Asylum's 1993 song Runaway Train, whose music video doubled as a call to action by showing missing children around the world and urging viewers on channels such as MTV and VH1 to help find them.

With their wide social media presence and their seven summer signings, Roma put to good use the viral wave of transfer announcements, one of the most popular times on social media when posts get a lot of traction, taking that moment and using it for social good.

Roma's head of social media Paul Rogers explained: "This is a cause that we certainly believe in, and it can unify football fans as well because social media has become so toxic.

"We thought it'd do something good, it doesn't matter whether you're a Roma fan, these people can still engage, share this content and help. We had messages from families thanking us because it gave them some hope - and some really, really heartwarming messages overall.

"It's quite a simple thing for us to do but it had impact and meaning for a lot of people. We didn't do it to receive a pat on the back, we wanted to do some good and to show that football can be good. It's a credit to not just Roma fans, but fans of all clubs and all media who supported this as well.

"It's united the football world in a way for a good cause, and it would be great if other clubs and organisations could jump on this, just think of the impact that some of the clubs with an even bigger following than Roma would have."

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