I’m a pop culture and TV fanatic. I’ve even been called the king of useless information. In any conversation about a television show or film I'll feed you an obscure fact about one of the actors, directors or producers that I know you will never have heard before. My standard reads are The Hollywood Reporter, Variety, and Ad Age. But my fascination with Hollywood and the entertainment business doesn’t mean I have any respect for it. I’ve never gotten Lady Gaga and no matter how many times I've watched Keeping Up With the Kardashians, I still haven't figured out exactly what it is they do with their lives.
Well, on December 1st, 2010, that all changed when Lady Gaga, the Kardashians, Justin Timberlake, Katie Holmes and Usher launched Digital Life Sacrifice and blanked out their social media profiles vowing not to return until they raised one million dollars for AIDS charities. As part of the campaign, some celebrities were photographed in coffins simulating their own deaths in order to draw awareness and donations to the cause. Leigh Blake, president of Keep a Child Alive was ecstatic with the results. She notes in a recent interview, "We're sort of trying to make the statement that why should we care so much about the death of one celebrity when millions and millions are dying all around us.” “In fact,'” she continues “Lady Gaga has made an enormous contribution already, attracting seven million Twitter followers and twenty four million Facebook fans.” And fans equal charitable donations. The current total to help fight HIV/AIDS in Africa and India currently stands at $1,111,885.
According to the buylife.org, these funds will go a very long way. In Durban, South Africa, $20 buys one hot nutritious meal. In Uganda, $50 buys food for an entire month and in India, $250 buys educational supplies for 50 children for a month.
So let’s think about this. There is most definitely a way to monetize all those Facebook fans and Twitter followers. If we add the Twitter followers for Selena Gomez, Ashton Kutcher, Kim Kardashian, Ryan Seacrest, Demi Moore, Jimmy Fallon and Khloe Kardashian and ask each one to contribute just $1 dollar, there would be a fund totaling $21,606,150. Imagine how impactful and meaningful that would be.
Here's a challenge for you. Look to your own Twitter followers and Facebook fans. What if you asked each one of them to contribute $1 to the charity that is near and dear to your heart? Make it easy for them to do so by setting up a Twitpay account for donations.
As for me, the next time I find myself resenting The Kardashians or wondering what the heck Lady Gaga is trying to stand for, I'll look back on the Digital Life Sacrifice Campaign humbly and hand over some money to Autism Speaks.
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