Kirkby 1 Zak Kirkby Instructor: Malcolm Campbell English 1102 March 23, 2014 Are Celebrities Effective in Geopolitics?

With mass media being as popular as it is today, I think we all can agree that it is celebrities who we all pay most of our attention to. It seems like their every move is covered by some type of media company. These people who are considered celebrities often are among the wealthiest individuals in the world. These two facts expose how they can stand up for things they believe in, and be brought into the cultural spotlight for it. There are certain times when celebrities can be helpful in geopolitics, but there are also instances where they can be hurtful. Geopolitics is the study of how geography, both human and physical, effect international politics and relations (Dodds 1). Their popularity ensures that their cause is heard. What we want to know is, do these massive media plunges actually make a difference in their respective areas? Oprah Winfrey is recognized nationally as being a self-made billionaire. She is a firm believer in feminism. One year during Christmas time she was invited by Nelson Mandela to South Africa to help pass out presents to kids that lived in poverty. She and Mandela spoke about how to rid the world of poverty, and agreed that it can effectively be achieved through education. This moment is when Oprah got the idea to open an all-girls boarding school in South Africa (Winfrey). Soon after her epiphany, Oprah was opening her school. The school is called Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls, or OWLAG. In January of 2007 the school was opened, and has been thriving ever since. According the schools website the forty million dollar project

Kirkby 2 has paid off astronomically for the future of South Africa. Since the school opened, on average, 7 girls per year have gone on to study at higher learning institutions in the United States. According to an interview with The Huffington Post conducted by Marianne Schnall, Oprah admits that these issues of poverty and lack of education occur worldwide, and that she hopes her school in South Africa can be used as a model for other schools around the world. She also states that the school is continually graduating about four hundred girls which gives South Africa a new vision for leadership. This is not the first time Oprah has tried to make a difference in the world. Upon moving to Chicago she tried to various things such as moving families out of the projects, and big sister programs. She has reported many failures and attributes education as the key to success at her school. Referring back to her interview Oprah says, You have to start at the core of how they think. So that's why education is so important to me. Another reason her school was successful was because she had the support of the South African government with her in Mandela. They came to an agreement on how to better the nation, and Oprah acted upon it. She is instilling in these girls the morals and values you need in life to contribute to the world and make it a better place. Governmental Support is extremely important when it comes to geopolitics. Oprahs case displays this quite vividly. Her dream started in the house of the South African leader, whom she had complete support from the entire time. One could also speculate that if the school was having financial trouble of any kind, they would be aided quickly by federal grants. George Clooney, an award winning actor, has been active in African aid for several years. His specific interest in Africa is the mass genocide in Darfur. He and a few other big

Kirkby 3 named actors including Matt Damon, Brad Pitt, and Don Cheadle have started a charitable awareness group called Not on Our Watch. This organization is devoted to humanitarianism and does so by developing campaigns that bring global attention to international crises and giving voice to their victims. According to the organizations website they are active not only in Darfur, but also in Burma and Zimbabwe. Clooney has also utilized his abilities as an actor as leverage for his cause. He teamed together with HBO in 2007 to make a documentary about Sudan, and the Darfur Genocide called Darfur Now. The documentary takes an inside look on what is going on in the war torn area. Clooney has successfully gotten national attention, and has been able to put his personal stamp on it. His hard work and dedication is commended. During one of his visits while making the documentary Clooney and his crew were hijacked by rebels. Clooney was held at gun point by a twelve year old kid while the group was robbed. He has not let the incident hinder his activist ways, since then he has continued to visit Darfur according to Andrew Meldrum of The Global Post. Clooney has also contributed a great help to the Sudanese people by placing a satellite over the country that has been successful in producing incriminating photos. This is opening doors for an intervention in Darfur. According to Andrew Meldrum of the Global Post sixty two members of congress have recently signed a letter to US President Barack Obama, citing the Satellite Sentinel Project's work in providing evidence of mass graves in 8 locations in South Kordofan province. Clooney may not be posing an immediate fix to the genocide, but in the long run he will be considered a major contributor at putting a stop to this malicious activity. The Satellite Sentinel Project was kicked off in 2010. Over time it has helped Clooney and company exploit the barbaric acts of the rebel leaders. Not on Our Watch has been

Kirkby 4 continually raising money for the Satellite Sentinel Project, because it costs ten thousand dollars for each image. Its safe to say that George Clooneys commitment cannot be questioned. He has spent countless hours raising money and awareness for this crime ridden part of the world. He has put his life in harms way, just to expose the way of everyday life in these areas. This kind of commitment is admired and respected by most people. On the other hand, there are the celebrities who get involved in geopolitical situations for all the wrong reasons. Whether they are seeking a pay day, or just a second coming at stardom, they do not but cause turmoil. Dennis Rodman is famous for being a super star in the basketball world. He is referred to as one of the best rebounders to ever play the game. However, the former member of the Chicago Bulls has been has become notoriously popular for his recent visits to North Korea. As we all know, North Korea and the United States do not see eye to eye on anything. They are a very unstable nation who has recently aimed nuclear threats at America. They have a new leader in the thirty one year old Kim Jong Un. Dennis Rodman has a friendly relationship with the new and unpredictable leader according to CNNs Mariano Castillo. Castillo also reports that Rodman thinks Kim Jong Un is a nice guy. Many of us question if there is anything to be gained in North Korea. Rodman argues that through the game of basketball an idea can be shared that these two countries can get along. In the public view this stunt Rodman is pulling seems to be a cry for attention. He is criticized by fellow Americans as being a traitor.

Kirkby 5 Rodman has lost his credibility throughout the process through a couple of key events. During his most recent visit he put on a basketball game for Kim Jong Uns birthday. At the event he sang happy birthday, and bowed to the leader. He also appeared in an interview where he seemed to be intoxicated. This stunt led him to admitting to being an alcoholic. Soon after returning to the states he entered a rehab center where he has been working to get his act together (Castillo). Because of these mishaps it seems he has made little to no progress at lightening things up between the United States and North Korea. Rodman went about action in a way that has proven to work in the past. He used the game of basketball to try and show people that we are the same. It worked with the United States and Russia in Hockey. It just seems as if we are so far away from peace with the North Koreans that seeking peace was just unreasonable. Timing is another thing Rodman had going against him. During his peace efforts the North Korean leader made threats toward the United States. This makes Rodman look extremely guilty, even though he most likely had nothing to do with it. It seems as if he was just caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. There is no true fine line between success and failure. In all situations making a difference is going to be tough. Time is going to be spent steadily along with money in efforts to make our world a better place. Credit should be given to all who seek to make this world a more peaceful place. All of the people have positive intentions, but some just are not as effective as others. Given the various examples I have shown how celebrities can be of assistance and hindrance to geopolitical situations. In order to be successful the celebrities must be hard

Kirkby 6 working and committed to their cause. Governmental support, reasonable cause, and leadership are critical for celebrities to be successful in the geopolitical spectrum. Their every move seems to be on our radar so they have to be on good behavior, and must gain credibility to get continuous support.

Kirkby 7 Works Cited Castillo, Mariano, and Jason Hanna. "5 Things Dennis Rodman Wants Cable News Network, 31 Jan. 2014. Web. 11 Mar. 2014. 11 Mar. 2014. You to Know." CNN.

Dodds, Klaus. "Celebrity Geopolitics." Academia.edu. N.p., 2012. Web. Meldrum, Andrew. "George Clooney Angers Sudan Regime." 2011. Web. 11 Mar. 2014. Not On Our Watch Project. Not On Our Watch. Web. 25 Mar. 2014.

GlobalPost. N.p., 2 Dec.

Schnall, Marianne. "Exclusive: Interview With Oprah About Her School for Girls." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 12 Oct. 2012. Web. 11 Mar. 2014.

Winfrey, Oprah. Building A Dream. Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy For Girls, December 2012. Web. 25 Mar. 2014