Clooney Hosts MTV Telethon for Haiti; Brad, Angelina, Wyclef Donate to Relief Efforts
Emily Miller
Columnist
Posted:
01/14/10
George Clooney will host a telethon to raise money for rescue and relief efforts for Haiti after the devastating 7.0 earthquake Tuesday. The telethon – which will air 8-10 p.m. Eastern time Jan. 22 on all MTV channels, ABC, NBC, HBO and CNN – will include celebrity appeals from both U.S. coasts. At a party Wednesday night, singer Sting and his wife Trude Styler agreed to be on the program, at Clooney's request.
Many Hollywood celebrities, including Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, have announced large financial donations to relief causes for Haiti.
In press releases, tweets, Facebook updates and Web site posts, celebrities are publicizing their support and appealing to the public to follow their lead by donating to nonprofits.
Pitt and Jolie are giving $1 million to Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières because "it is incredibly horrible to see a catastrophe of this size hit a people who have been suffering from extreme poverty, violence and unrest for so many decades," they said in a statement . The actress is a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations' High Commissioner for Refugees.
"We are devastated by the news from Haiti," said the couple, who visited Haiti in 2006 to support musician Wyclef Jean's charity, Yele Haiti. "We will work closely with our good friend Wyclef Jean to support the humanitarian efforts on the island and help those who have been injured and left without homes and shelter."
Wyclef Jean, a native of Haiti, has long raised funds for his homeland. Since the earthquake struck, he has been leading fund-raising efforts by asking people to text "Yele" to 501501 to donate $5 to the Yele Haiti Earthquake Fund.
Also donating to Doctors Without Borders is Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong. He pledged $250,000 to the organization and Partners in Health for Haitian relief efforts, through his foundation, LiveStrong.
After visiting Haiti last year, actor Ben Stiller was inspired to start a charity called "STILLERSTRONG" with the group, Save the Children, to raise money to build schools in one community. Since the earthquake, Stiller's organization has encouraged donations to the United Nations and redirected all donations to his foundation to these relief organizations.
Coldplay lead singer Chris Martin, who visited Haiti in 2002, urged people to donate to OxFam, saying, "The earthquake that has struck Haiti will have turned the city into an unimaginable hell."
In the twitterverse, celebrities pointed fans to their select charities. Actor Ashton Kutcher directed fans to UNICEF, as did singer John Legend, who tweeted Tuesday night: "A terrible earthquake today in Haiti, a desperately poor country. UNICEF is on the ground providing relief. Help!"
Rapper P. Diddy asked fans to text donations to Yele Haiti, tweeting: "God Bless Haiti!!!! God please!!!" Other celebrities tweeted for Haiti, including singer Adam Lambert, "House" star Olivia Wilde, singer Selena Gomez and actress Alyssa Milano.
Talk show host Oprah Winfrey opened her show Wednesday with an appeal for donations to the Red Cross. "This is a time where we, as a global nation, should come together and support those who are in need." she said.
If you plan to donate, consider using one of the Web sites below:
American Red Cross: http://www.redcross.org/
UNICEF: http://www.unicefusa.org/
Doctors Without Borders: http://doctorswithoutborders.org/
Yele Haiti: http://www.yele.org/
OxFam: http://www.oxfam.org/
LiveStong: http://www.livestrong.org/
StillerStrong: http://www.stillerstrong.org/
Follow me on Twitter @EmilyMillerDC
Many Hollywood celebrities, including Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, have announced large financial donations to relief causes for Haiti.
In press releases, tweets, Facebook updates and Web site posts, celebrities are publicizing their support and appealing to the public to follow their lead by donating to nonprofits.
Pitt and Jolie are giving $1 million to Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières because "it is incredibly horrible to see a catastrophe of this size hit a people who have been suffering from extreme poverty, violence and unrest for so many decades," they said in a statement . The actress is a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations' High Commissioner for Refugees.
"We are devastated by the news from Haiti," said the couple, who visited Haiti in 2006 to support musician Wyclef Jean's charity, Yele Haiti. "We will work closely with our good friend Wyclef Jean to support the humanitarian efforts on the island and help those who have been injured and left without homes and shelter."
Wyclef Jean, a native of Haiti, has long raised funds for his homeland. Since the earthquake struck, he has been leading fund-raising efforts by asking people to text "Yele" to 501501 to donate $5 to the Yele Haiti Earthquake Fund.
Also donating to Doctors Without Borders is Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong. He pledged $250,000 to the organization and Partners in Health for Haitian relief efforts, through his foundation, LiveStrong.
After visiting Haiti last year, actor Ben Stiller was inspired to start a charity called "STILLERSTRONG" with the group, Save the Children, to raise money to build schools in one community. Since the earthquake, Stiller's organization has encouraged donations to the United Nations and redirected all donations to his foundation to these relief organizations.
Coldplay lead singer Chris Martin, who visited Haiti in 2002, urged people to donate to OxFam, saying, "The earthquake that has struck Haiti will have turned the city into an unimaginable hell."
In the twitterverse, celebrities pointed fans to their select charities. Actor Ashton Kutcher directed fans to UNICEF, as did singer John Legend, who tweeted Tuesday night: "A terrible earthquake today in Haiti, a desperately poor country. UNICEF is on the ground providing relief. Help!"
Rapper P. Diddy asked fans to text donations to Yele Haiti, tweeting: "God Bless Haiti!!!! God please!!!" Other celebrities tweeted for Haiti, including singer Adam Lambert, "House" star Olivia Wilde, singer Selena Gomez and actress Alyssa Milano.
Talk show host Oprah Winfrey opened her show Wednesday with an appeal for donations to the Red Cross. "This is a time where we, as a global nation, should come together and support those who are in need." she said.
If you plan to donate, consider using one of the Web sites below:
American Red Cross: http://www.redcross.org/
UNICEF: http://www.unicefusa.org/
Doctors Without Borders: http://doctorswithoutborders.org/
Yele Haiti: http://www.yele.org/
OxFam: http://www.oxfam.org/
LiveStong: http://www.livestrong.org/
StillerStrong: http://www.stillerstrong.org/
Follow me on Twitter @EmilyMillerDC