Detroit (WWJ)  -- Through radio ads and phone calls,  supporters of the Big 3 automakers are calling on Michiganders to help spread good news about the auto industry. 

Wayne County executive Robert Ficano Tuesday announced a new website seeking donations to run radio ads in southern states where there has been opposition to a $25 billion federal loan.  Click here to link to the American Auto Industry Rocks site.  

Ficano said the plan is to have two campaigns, one in the Detroit market and in the south in support of the auto industry loan.  The ads will run in Alabama, Kentucky and Tennessee. 

"The auto industry needs to be heard and we need to show our support. Jobs, lives and this region's future are at stake," Ficano said. 

Detroit mayoral candidate Nick Hood and other local business leaders urged Detroiters to call the U.S. House of Representatives and tell lawmakers to support the loan.  The number to the U.S. House is 202-224-3121.  

The Council of Baptist Pastors, Detroit's largest and most influential group of clergymen, and members of the United Auto Workers were to hold a news conference Tuesday afternoon to show a united front and push Congress to approve the loans. 

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