World Water Day. Christine Amanpour interviewed Ben Affleck who just returned form eastern DRC, which remains one of the darkest places in our World in terms of murders and rapes per capita. He was there raising awareness for a place that’s seen far more civil war and violence than neighboring Darfur but has received disproportionately less media attention.
As I was thinking about this, I was struck with the thought: how does a celebrity ‘raise awareness’? Aren’t they really only raising awareness for them self? And does any of that awareness linger around and make a difference for the people who need it?
What do you think? Where do you stand on this?
On a slight shift, here’s a video from photographer James Nachtwey. Really, all three and a half minutes are worth a watch (minus the melodramatic narration), but the best part is 1:17 – 2:08. I thought about writing more on this, but I think the video speaks enough for itself.