Celebrities and Philanthropy
When talking to people about ONE I can’t count how many times someone has said, “Oh yeah, I saw [insert celebrity name here] on TV talking about that.”
There have been several times that statement has been followed by, “but what do they really know about poverty?” It is a fair question and one that I’ve thought about a lot given that much of my inspiration for this cause has come from Bono.
A lot of my questions were answered in a recent article entitled The Celebrity Solution published in the New York Times. Celebrities have an uncanny ability to get appointments with legislators and world leaders. They have the ability to make issues clear not only for their fans, but also for politicians. NYT’s James Traub writes:
Donald Steinberg, of the International Crisis Group, talks about ‘a simplicity on the other side of complexity’ that some stars he has worked with, like Angelina Jolie, are able to summon — a ringing clarity that is not simple-minded. Bono likes to say that ’statistics don’t rhyme,’ but he has a gift for making them rhyme.
The full article is a little lengthy, but worth the read if you want to be able to answer people when they ask what Bono, Brad Pitt or George Clooney know or can do about poverty. Read the article here.
Nick Stevens, ONE ROA
June 12th, 2009 at 2:27 pm
My ex is a slut and I want revenge