For a long while celebrities have been pretty vocal about their political beliefs. They are not strangers to being used by both political parties to taunt their positions or to help in raising money for their party through their celebrity clout.
Some say that celebrities and politics don’t mix. After reading a recent article by Jeff Davidson on TMZ.com, 90% of me agrees. Many celebrities put their faces in commercials or join a campaign to tell people to vote. Yet, one celebrity in the 2004 Vote or Die campaign turned out to be all lip service. Or there are those who threaten leaving the country if a political figure is re-elected; remember Alec Baldwin? That is what bothers me the most. Celebrities who talk and talk and won’t shut up (and then make money off of their chattering) or those who take a punch during a concert, but quite honestly don’t do a darn thing to help foster change. Am I alone in this annoyance?
The other 10% of me that disagrees is for the celebs who actually do more than lip service, but follow it up with a true call to action. Some celebs who have done this? The late Ronald Regan, the late Sonny Bono and the current California Governor, Arnold Swartzenager, to name a few. They decided not to only talk the talk, but walk the walk as well.
You have celebs who say they support a cause and then those like Angelina Jolie who didn’t just say she supported something, but put her words into action and became a UN Goodwill Embassador. Elton John didn’t just speak out about the need for research and support for those with AIDS, he founded a non-profit charity. Andre Aggasi founded a charity that provides recreational and educational activities for at-risk boys and girls. Brian Littrel founded the Healthy Heart Club for Kids. Doug Flutie began the Doug Flutie Jr. Foundation for Autism, something I admire him for as a mom with a child with Autism. This is just a small list of celebrities who use their fame to help foster change. You can read about celebrities and their charities on this Readers Digest page.
For now, if I want to hear about a celebrity and their stand on political issues, I will just keep to watching my fair and unbalanced news shows such as The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and The Colbert Report. At least they know how to look at celeb politics…with a dose of humor.
What is your stand on the mix of celebrities and politics or celebrities and their causes?
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