Who will be the Greatest American? Political giant Abraham Lincoln or Bill Clinton? Sports legend Babe Ruth or Tiger Woods? Media mogul Oprah Winfrey or Walt Disney? These remarkable people, and many more, have been named by America as some of the top 100 Greatest Americans. After tallying more than half a million online nominations, Discovery Channel and interactive partner America Online today unveiled the list of the top 100 nominees. Ranging from inventors to athletes, politicians to musicians, the list takes the pulse of the nation and reveals the qualities we most admire. (The full list is attached. The list, nominee biographies, and additional information can be found on aol.com/greatestamerican and Keyword: Greatest American)

Beginning Sunday, June 5 at 8 PM (ET/PT), and airing every Sunday in June, GREATEST AMERICAN will premiere on Discovery Channel with Today show's Matt Lauer presenting the top 100 nominees. At the end of the premiere episode, Lauer will announce the top 25 great American nominees based on nominations held earlier this year. Viewers can then cast votes at the AOL site listed above, via toll-free numbers or via test messaging.

In the second episode, Matt Lauer and influentials (actors, comedians, politicians, athletes, etc) will offer insights on the top 25 to aid America in another round of voting that determines the top five. The third episode pits celebrity advocates against one another, debating the virtues of their "Greatest American." The seven-hour series culminates in real-time election-style voting, as America selects one person to be named the "Greatest American." The grand finale will be televised live from New York City on Sunday, June 26, at 9 PM (ET).

Discovery Channel is partnering with America Online on this extraordinary, interactive project to highlight Americans of importance and the incredible contributions they made to our society. Biographies of those on the Top 100 list are available for viewing at aol.com/greatestamerican and Keyword: Greatest American and are arranged alphabetically. This site will also offer "person on the street" interviews with ordinary Americans who share their thoughts on who the "Greatest American" is and why.

GREATEST AMERICAN is produced for Discovery Channel by NBC Entertainment. Executive Producers for NBC are Sharon Scott and Jason Raff. For Discovery Channel, Mark Finkelpearl is the executive producer. America Online, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Time Warner Inc. Based in Dulles, Virginia, America Online is the world's leader in interactive services, Web brands, Internet technologies and e-commerce services.

Tide Coldwater is a proud partner of GREATEST AMERICAN.

Discovery Channel is the United States' largest cable television network, serving 89.8 million households across the nation with the finest in informative entertainment. Discovery Networks, U.S., a unit of Discovery Communications, Inc., operates and manages Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, Travel Channel, Discovery Health Channel, Discovery HD Theater, Discovery Kids Channel, Discovery Times Channel, The Science Channel, Discovery Home Channel, Military Channel, Discovery en Español and FitTV. The unit also distributes BBC AMERICA. For more information, please log onto www.discovery.com.