Jolie tops do-gooder poll
2007-12-27 17:57
London - From tattooed wild woman
to humanitarian heroine - what a difference a few years has
made for Angelina Jolie, who topped a Reuters poll released on
Thursday of the best celebrity humanitarians of 2007.
Hollywood star Jolie commanded the greatest public respect
of all celebrity public do-gooders this year due to her work as
a UN goodwill ambassador and as an adoptive mother trying to
raise awareness of suffering in Africa.
But the poll by humanitarian Web site Reuters AlertNet
(www.alertnet.org) found not all do-gooders fared so well, with
fellow adoptive mother Madonna voted the least respected
celebrity altruist of 2007 despite raising millions for orphans
in Malawi, and Bob Geldof struggling for support.
Madonna's image was hit by claims she used her fame and
wealth to circumvent Malawian adoption rules.
"People aren't stupid," said Peter Walker, director of the
Feinstein International Famine Center at Tufts University.
Angelina has 'more integrity'
"They can really sense when it's just an endorsement and
when somebody really means it. Someone like Angelina Jolie
comes across as having more integrity than some celebrities and
a greater sense that she doesn't just do this for the
publicity."
The online poll of 606 people conducted from December 7 to 19
put 32-year-old Jolie ahead of U2 singer Bono, Archbishop
Desmond Tutu and Microsoft founder Bill Gates - all of whom
have helped put African suffering on the global agenda.
The result underlined how far Jolie has changed her image
since shocking onlookers by French kissing her brother at an
awards ceremony about seven years ago and from wearing a vial
of second husband Billy Bob Thornton's blood around her neck.
Since becoming an ambassador in 2001 for the UN refugee
agency UNHCR, she has visited more than 20 humanitarian hot
spots, most recently Iraq.
"She does this in a very low-key way," said UNHCR spokesperson
Peter Kessler. "She goes out to see for herself, to get up
close and very personal. She doesn't travel with film crews,
and I think that is real testimony to her dedication to the
cause."
Jolie has three adopted children - from Ethiopia, Cambodia
and Vietnam, and last year gave birth to a daughter, Shiloh,
with her actor partner Brad Pitt.
But she has sparked little of the controversy that has
dogged Madonna, who adopted a toddler from Malawi in 2006.
A disposable fad
"Madonna seems to do philanthropy the way she's done Indian
culture, sex, and just about everything - like a disposable
fad," said one anonymous voter. "Hope she doesn't get bored of
her adopted African kid."
John McKie, who recruits celebrities for British relief
agency Christian Aid, was less critical of Madonna.
"She has played Live8 and she's got her own charity in
Malawi," he said. "Many celebrities don't engage in Africa on
any level, so we shouldn't be too hard on Madonna."
After Madonna, US socialite Paris Hilton gave the worst
name to celebrity humanitarianism in 2007, the poll found,
after announcing she planned to swap partying for philanthropy
with a trip to Rwanda. The trip was later postponed.
Famous figures who scored highly for their humanitarian
work included former US presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy
Carter, Jordan's Queen Rania and former UN secretary-general
Kofi Annan.
Actors Mia Farrow, Don Cheadle and Brad Pitt won praise for
their advocacy on behalf of Sudan's war-torn Darfur region.
Bono showed he has both admirers and detractors, ranking
second after Jolie in the "most respected" category but also
attracting enough negative votes to put him in the top five
celebrity do-gooders people love to hate - with Bob Geldof.
"This guy probably believes he's the new Messiah," said one
anonymous voter.