Forum Post: CNN. The Celebrity News Network. What a bunch of rotten sold-out pigs. It's bad enough that they constantly praise celebrities for their bogus fake humanitarian crap every time they have a new movie, show, CD, fashion line, or some other over-priced crap
Posted 12 years ago on Dec. 10, 2011, 1:54 p.m. EST by ModestCapitalist
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CNN. The Celebrity News Network. What a bunch of rotten sold-out pigs. It's bad enough that they constantly praise celebrities for their bogus fake humanitarian crap every time they have a new movie, show, CD, fashion line, or some other over-priced crap to promote. All while COMPLETELY IGNORING the record high concentration of wealth that filthy rich celebrities represent. That's bad enough.
But now, they have the nerve to hype up a new show about 'heroes' and claim that its about ordinary people. It's not. It should be but it's not.
IT SHOULD BE BUT ITS NOT. Those 'ordinary people' are being exploited for ratings and PR. How do I know this? That's easy.
The show will be hosted by Anderson Cooper. The CNN poster boy. His face appears on every single ad for the show. EVERY SINGLE ONE. That wasn't necessary. The show will be attended by the same filthy rich celebrity pigs that CNN commentators constantly praise for their bogus 'good will' and fake humanitarian crap. That isn't necessary.
Mark my words: Those celebrity pigs won't be upstaged by 'ordinary people'. No way in hell. THEY REFUSE TO BE UPSTAGED BY ANYONE. They won't stay seated. They won't stay in the background. They have agreed to attend the show in part, to give the ILLUSION that they are humble and modest. They are not. They all have ulterior motives. Every single one of them.
Mark my words: Those filthy rich celebrities have already negotiated with CNN for their own airtime. Their faces will be shown OVER AND OVER AND OVER during the show itself. They will be mentioned by name and invited to appear on stage during the show.
FILTHY RICH CELEBRITY PIGS WHO ALL HAVE NEW PRODUCTS TO PROMOTE. EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM. THEY ALWAYS HAVE ULTERIOR MOTIVES. ITS AWAYS ABOUT MARKETING. ITS ALWAYS ABOUT PROMOTING THEMSELVES. THIS IS NO EXCEPTION. THEY CANT EVEN STEP ASIDE AND LET A FEW REAL HEROES HAVE THEIR OWN FUCKING DAY WITHOUT SHOWING THEIR ROTTEN CELEBRITY FACES. ITS A SHAM. ANOTHER ROTTEN MARKETING TRICK.
Of course, there will be scripted lines. The ordinary people were chosen in part, for their willingness to show love for their favorite celebrities or fake it for the camera. Of course, there will be celebrity praise. Maybe, even fake tears. Just remember: Commercial airtime is incredibly valuable. Each minute of commercial airtime is worth six or seven figures. They aren't allocated unless there is a profit to be made. These shows don't just happen. They are carefully planned and rehearsed ahead of time. Every single participant has been coached on what to do and what to say. This includes the ordinary people. Most of whom probably don't realize that they are being exploited by CNN. The Celebrity News Network.
CNN. It's bad enough that they constantly praise filthy rich celebrity pigs for their bogus fake humanitarian crap. They even devoted an entire segment in December of '09' to Madonna and her now disgraced 'Raising Malawi' foundation. That's bad enough. But they can't even throw a bone to a few ordinary people without including a bunch of filthy rich fake humanitarian celebrity pigs.
ALL OF WHICH HAVE NEW PRODUCTS TO PROMOTE. EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM.
It makes me sick.
Good will has become big business.
The rich and famous do not want to be seen as 'pigs' or go down in history as 'villains'. They want to be seen as 'heros' and go down in history as 'humanitarians'. The market for their product has become global. The fan base has become global. Therefore, the 'humanitarian' effort and 'good will' PR machine has gone global. These 'humanitarian' efforts and 'good deeds' are not chosen to address the greatest need or injustice. They are chosen almost exclusively to appeal to the largest demographic for their respective commercial products. The largest fan base. Efficiency or effect is of little or no concern. Its all about PR, marketing, image, and fame.
This is why the rich and famous have all taken up 'philanthropy' or 'good will' around the world. This is why so many have 'schools' or 'foundations' in their name. This is why so many play golf or appear on a TV game show for 'charity'. This is why so many sign motorcycles, other merchandise, or auction off their own 'personal effects' for 'charity'. This is why so many have TV shows with a 'charitable' gimmick. This is why so many arrange photo ops with wounded veterans, firefighters, or sick children. This is why so many have adopted children from around the world (Which they always pay others to care for full time. The hired professionals are sworn by legal contract to confidentiality. Not allowed to discuss or appear in public with the children they care for. Those 'photo' and 'interview' opportunities are reserved exclusively for the rich and famous 'adoptive' parents.). This is why every 'humanitarian' effort and 'good deed' is plastered all over the media worldwide. Its not about 'humanity' or 'good will'. Its all about marketing, image, fame, and PROFIT. This is why we are so often reminded of their respective 'good deeds' or 'humanitarian' efforts shortly before or after the release of their latest commercial product.
Charitywatch.org and Charitynavigator.org are both non-profit charity watchdogs. Of all the well rated charities (about 1500) only three are closely affiliated with celebrities. Michael J Fox (not the primary donor), Tiger Woods (not the primary donor), and Bill Clinton (not the primary donor). That's three well rated celebrity foundations out of 1500. In general, celebrity foundations run like crap because they blow half the money on private jet rides, five star accommodations, and PR crews.
The fans have been terribly misled. For example:
Virtually every penny 'donated' by Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt to date has come from repeated sales of baby photos. With each sale, the baby money goes to the 'Jolie-Pitt' foundation. A foundation which has never done anything but shelter funds. The 'donation' is immediately publicized worldwide.
When Jolie or Pitt have a new movie to promote, a portion is then donated from their own 'foundation' to a legitimate charity. This leaves their ignorant fans under the impression that 'another' donation has been made. When in fact, its the same baby money being transferred again and again. Another portion is blown on private jet rides, super-exclusive accommodations, photo ops, and PR crap. This saves Jolie and Pitt millions in travel/stay expenses and their respective studios tens of millions in advertising. It's all very calculated.
Of course, Jolie and Pitt could simply endorse any of the 1500 most efficient and effective charities. Of course, the baby money would go much further and do far more good if it were donated to such charities to begin with.
But that would be too boring.
The 'Make it Right' Foundation took in over $12,000,000 the first year alone. Tens of millions overall. Brad Pitt has never been the primary donor, planner, or designer. He is a figurehead and salesman with a position on the board of advisors. Nothing more. Still, he has been showered with glorious praise by fellow celebrities and media outlets around the world. Again, the fans have been terribly misled.
In order to move into a 'green' home, the innocent victims of Katrina are required to provide a property deed, meet a number of financial requirements, and pay an average of $75,000 UP FRONT. The difference is offered in cheap loans or on occasion (according to the website) forgiven. To date, only a few dozen former home owners have qualified.
The 'Make it Right' foundation was never intended to help the lower income residents of New Orleans reclaim anything lost in Katrina. In fact, 'Make it Right' is part of a calculated effort to rebuild the Lower Ninth Ward without them. Part of a calculated effort to raise property values in the area by displacing the poor. They are by design, excluded. Unable to qualify. Of course, Brad Pitt could have simply endorsed 'Habitat For Humanity'. A well known, proven, and efficient home building operation. Of course, the tens of millions in funding would have gone MUCH further.
But that would be too boring. Big name celebrities have no desire to make the world a better place.
Their primary goal is to appear as if they do.
It's a sham. Good will has become big business.
I'm glad somebody has the guts to call out the celebrity 'charity' bullshit. good post.
“When I give food to the poor, they call me a saint. When I ask why the poor have no food, they call me a communist.” ~Hélder Câmara
That's a damn good quote.
Dom Hélder Pessoa Câmara (February 7, 1909, Fortaleza, Ceará, North East Brazil - August 27, 1999 Recife) was Roman Catholic Archbishop of Olinda and Recife.
He was known as the 'Bishop of Corum' and took a clear position with the urban poor.~wiki
I'm sure he would approve of the Occupy movement.
I've never heard of him before but thanks for the info. I'll read up on it later.
Me neither. But the quote, and it is a damn good one, seemed appropriate.
"...This cult of distraction, as Rojeck points out, masks the real disintegration of culture. It conceals the meaninglessness and emptiness of our own lives. It seduces us to engage in imitative consumption. It deflects the moral questions arising from mounting social injustice, growing inequalities, costly imperial wars, and economic collapse and political corruption. The wild pursuit of status and wealth has destroyed our souls and our economy. Families live in sprawling mansions financed with mortgages they can no longer repay. Consumers recklessly rang up Coach handbags and Manolo Blahnik shoes on credit cards because they seemed to confer a sense of identity and merit. Our favorite hobby, besides television, used to be, until reality hit us like a tsunami, shopping. Shopping used to be the compensation for spending five days a week in tiny cubicles. American workers are ground down by corporations who have disempowered them, used them, and have now discarded them.
Celebrities have fame free of responsibility. The fame of celebrities, wrote Mills, disguises those who possess true power: corporations and the oligarchic elite. Magical thinking is the currency not only of celebrity culture, but of totalitarian culture. And as we sink into an economic and political morass, we are still controlled, manipulated and distracted by the celluloid shadows on the dark wall of Plato’s cave. The fantasy of celebrity culture is not designed simply to entertain. It is designed to keep us from fighting back..." ~Chris Hedges
I like buying things I really need, but I hate shopping for shopping's sake. And I despise coupons.
Chris Rojeck calls celebrity culture “the cult of distraction that valorizes the superficial, the gaudy, the domination of commodity culture.” He goes further:
"Capitalism originally sought to police play and pleasure, because any attempt to replace work as the central life interest threatened the economic survival of the system. The family, the state and religion engendered a variety of patterns of moral regulation to control desire and ensure compliance with the system of production. However, as capitalism developed, consumer culture and leisure time expanded. The principles that operated to repress the individual in the workplace and the home were extended to the shopping mall and recreational activity. The entertainment industry and consumer culture produced what Herbert Marcuse called ‘repressive desublimation.’ Through this process individuals unwittingly subscribed to the degraded version of humanity..."
I would like to cancel my subscription now.
ha ! concur
I am not anti-capitalism, but we are vastly approaching a capitalism with no rules, where the .001 percent control the game. Society does not work in that capacity. It's a Brave New World. The system consumes itself. Even Adam Smith stresses the importance of state, separation between corporation and state, and needed regulations to eliminate unnecessary risk and monopoly/control practices.
This post will be a little sloppy for starters. I will clean it up and repost a better essay later. I just want to get the discussion started on how actors and executives use the illusion of 'good will' to maximize their own profits. It's a complicated web of affiliation.
How do modern era celebrities get so incredibly rich? It's not as simple as making movies and selling tickets anymore. Major studios and TV networks are now owned by giant corporations which also own entities within other industries. Their strategies to maximize profits are more calculated than ever.
For example, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have had a special relationship with NBC for years. Countrywide and other banking entities have been sponsors. Not to mention Lowes, Home Depot, and Electrolux. But it's not as simple as selling ad space anymore. NBC is owned by GE. GE also owns at least one major production studeo and entities within the banking industry.
Giant corporations have been working together for years with major media outlets to increase profits. Part of their strategy has been to cross-market their products and services. Also to affiliate with celebrities and create the illusion of 'good will'. When in fact, the idea is to increase awareness and demand for every product and service provided within the umbrella of parent companies and corporate sponsors. New Orleans is known worldwide for it's unique culture. Tourism has been big business in the area for decades. Make it Right is now affiliated with Hyatt Regency. A high end hotel right next to the New Orleans Stadium. There is already a giant dual promotion planned for next spring. Ellen Degeneres (NBC juggernaut) is going to play a major role in this dual promotion. Housing, the related financing and home improvements have also been big business for decades.
If the Lower Ninth Ward is redeveloped with fewer poor people, property values will be increased along with profits made by all those affiliated with Make it Right. The web of affiliation with Pitt, NBC, GE, Hyatt, Lowes, Home Depot, and the banking industry is sprawling to say the least. The operation has also been used to promote at least one 'home improvement' TV show that I know of. Holmes on Homes. I don't recall the network but the show is designed to sell more high end home improvements. It's all very calculated.
I'm telling you that good will has become big business.
"What Orwell feared were those who would ban books," Neil Postman wrote:
What Huxley feared was that there would be no reason to ban a book, for there would be no one who wanted to read one. Orwell feared those who would deprive us of information. Huxley feared those who would give us so much that we would be reduced to passivity and egoism. Orwell feared that the truth would be concealed from us. Huxley feared the truth would be drowned in a sea of irrelevance. Orwell feared we would become a captive culture. Huxley feared we would become a trivial culture, preoccupied with some equivalent of the feelies, the orgy porgy, and the centrifugal bumblepuppy. As Huxley remarked in Brave New World Revisited, the civil libertarians and rationalists who are ever on the alert to oppose tyranny "failed to take into account man's almost infinite appetite for distractions." In 1984, Orwell added, people are controlled by inflicting pain. In Brave New World, they are controlled by inflicting pleasure. In short, Orwell feared that what we fear will ruin us. Huxley feared that our desire will ruin us...” ~Chris Hedges
All great philosophical points. More reading material.
concur. and thanks for your post. plus +1... yeah, we as a culture really need to educated beyond what the surface level says. we need to gain insight. I know this has been posted before, but George Carlin said it best, and he also contented that we need to teach are children to question not simply conform.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5dBZDSSky0
Eliot Spitzer brought up income inequality on his show, "In the Arena".. I think Ali Velshi brings it up all the time also. They don't avoid it. It just isn't on the shows that people watch.
I'll look for some quotes from those two. But the phrase "income inequality" alone just isn't good enough. It's far too vague to be considered as real information. The statistics matter.
The richest one percent now reap 24% of all personal income in America. They now own 43% of all financial wealth in America. Those figures have more than doubled in the last 30 years. During the same time frame, the middle and lower classes have lost trillions in assets.
If any commentator on CNN has ever acknowledged these statistics, I will certainly give them credit for doing so. If they have acknowledged the following, I will give them a truckload of credit:
According to the Social Security Administration, 50 percent of U.S. workers made less than $26,364 in 2010. In addition, those making less than $200,000, or 99 percent of Americans (actually more like 98%), saw their earnings fall by $4.5 billion collectively.
The sobering numbers were a far cry from what was going on for the richest one percent of Americans.
The incomes of the top one percent of the wage scale in the U.S. rose in 2010; and their collective wage earnings jumped by $120 billion.
In addition, those earning at least $1 million a year in wages, which is roughly 93,000 Americans, reported payroll income jumped 22 percent from 2009.
Overall, the economy has shed 5.2 million jobs since the start of the Great Recession in 2007. It’s the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression in the 1930’s.
But the phrase "income inequality" alone just isn't good enough.
"But the phrase "income inequality" alone just isn't good enough. It's far too vague to be considered as real information. The statistics matter."
That's where Spitzer practically dominated above all others. When the show was "Parker Spitzer" in the beginning, the table space in front of him would be stacked with papers and statistics. When a conservative guest would try to rebuff what he was saying, he would lay down a tirade of statistics and ask them for theirs.(which they never had)
I wish other people watched "In the Arena", because it was really a great show for Progressives that may not like all the partisan style of MSNBC programs.
But I guess that isn't a good argument against your critique of CNN, because they canceled his show.
But I'm pretty sure Ali Veshi shows graphs underlining the growing wealth disparity. I'm actually pretty sure CNN has been the only network that shows statistics like this.
Agree!
Wow interesting stuff. This OWS has become such an eye opener. You guys are good! Thanks! A+ on all your research!
Two examples of rotten disgusting immoral behavior involving five very well known filthy disgusting rich multi-hundred-millionaire fake humanitarian celebrity pigs.
The ugly truth about the housing market, Countrywide, predatory lending, and the endorsements of Oprah Winfrey, Ellen Degeneres, and Dr Phil. Ch'Ching!
The first subprime loans were issued in 1994. It was a gimmick to sell more homes, artificially inflate the market, sell more homes at higher profits, foreclose on those who could not pay when the ARM rates readjusted, take their homes leaving them with nothing to show for their payments, resell the homes at a higher profit and so on. It was a cruel and calculated plan to sell more homes and artificially inflate the market. Those loans were incredibly profitable for well over a decade before the house of cards finally collapsed. In the meantime, bankers got richer along with the richest one percent who made off with higher dividends. It was a sham.
The biggest player in the game was Countrywide. Endorsed by Oprah Winfrey, Ellen Degeneres, and Dr Phil. If you have their shows from '04' to '06' on tape, watch them again. All three were paid millions specifically to endorse Countrywide by name. The biggest subprime player in the game. They issued more ARM loans than anyone else. Foreclosing on those who could not make their monthy payments when the rates suddenly went through the roof. It was a cruel and calculated plan to sell more homes, artificially inflate the market, foreclose, and resell for a higher profit. The sham worked like a charm for 12 years before the house of cards finally fell in.
At this approximate time, the worthless paper was sold to unsuspecting investors.
Oprah, Ellen, and Dr Phil were paid millions for their endorsements. Ch'Ching!
They have always had their ignorant love-sick fans eating right out of their hands. This alone is irresponsible. But to stand there and tell their ignorant love-sick fans to run out and get a loan from the biggest rat in the industry. That's just sick.
These three pigs are not naive little uninformed twits like Paris Hilton. They are educated, informed, and extremely savvy mass media juggernauts. They knew damn well about predatory lending. It was a common phrase by then. Still, they stood there and endorsed the biggest subprime rat in the industry. They did so with a big fat FAKE smile on their face. Unfortunately, public figures are not legally required to be straight with their ignorant fans.
But they God damn well should be.
Bono is no humanitarian. In fact, he made millions from a shady deal with Live Nation in which other investors were made to subsidize his multi-million dollar stock options regardless of market value. The stock tanked, Bono unloaded, and those 'other' investors did in fact take giant losses in part, so the filthy disgusting rich multi-hundred-millionaire 'humanitarian' Bono would not have to.
Ch'Ching!
Just another rotten immoral disgusting trick perpetrated in the name of greed.
Madonna secured a similar deal with Live Nation.
I've said it many times and I will say it many more.
There is no such thing as a multi-millionaire humanitarian.
Celebrities are in the business of selling an image -- of themselves and many will sway any which way to project themselves as truly caring of whatever cause happens to take their passing fancy. Next thing we know, they have abandoned their principles for the sake of convenience or other selfish temptations.
"Forget the politicians. The politicians are put there to give you the idea that you have freedom of choice . . . you don’t. You have no choice. You have owners. They own you. They own everything. They own all the important land. They own, and control the corporations. They’ve long since bought, and paid for the Senate, the Congress, the state houses, the city halls, they got the judges in their back pockets and they own all the big media companies, so they control just about all of the news and information you get to hear. They got you by the balls. They spend billions of dollars every year lobbying . . . lobbying, to get what they want . . . Well, we know what they want. They want more for themselves and less for everybody else, but I’ll tell you what they don’t want . . . they don’t want a population of citizens capable of critical thinking. They don’t want well informed, well educated people capable of critical thinking. They’re not interested in that . . . that doesn’t help them. That’s against their interests. That’s right. They don’t want people who are smart enough to sit around a kitchen table and think about how badly they’re getting fucked by a system that threw them overboard 30 fuckin' years ago. They don’t want that. You know what they want? They want obedient workers . . . Obedient workers, people who are just smart enough to run the machines and do the paperwork. And just dumb enough to passively accept all these increasingly shittier jobs with the lower pay, the longer hours, the reduced benefits, the end of overtime and vanishing pension that disappears the minute you go to collect it, and now they’re coming for your Social Security money. They want your fuckin' retirement money. They want it back so they can give it to their criminal friends on Wall Street, and you know something? They’ll get it . . . they’ll get it all from you sooner or later cause they own this fuckin' place. It’s a big club and you ain't in it. You and I are not in The big club. By the way, it’s the same big club they use to beat you over the head with all day long when they tell you what to believe. All day long beating you over the head with their media telling you what to believe, what to think and what to buy. The table has tilted folks. The game is rigged and nobody seems to notice. Nobody seems to care. Good honest hard-working people . . . white collar, blue collar it doesn’t matter what color shirt you have on. Good honest hard-working people continue, these are people of modest means . . . continue to elect these rich cocksuckers who don’t give a fuck about you. They don’t give a fuck about you . . . they don’t give a fuck about you. They don’t care about you at all . . . at all . . . at all, and nobody seems to notice. Nobody seems to care. That’s what the owners count on. The fact that Americans will probably remain willfully ignorant of the big red, white and blue dick that’s being jammed up their assholes everyday, because the owners of this country know the truth. It’s called the American Dream cause you have to be asleep to believe it . . .” ~George Carlin
good post!
Anderson Cooper = what a joke...what happened to real press and the freedom of speech?? Well freedom of speech does not apply to investigating the practices of the corporations that own you (i.e. the media) I guess. You can't bite the hand that feeds...
It's quite a conundrum...Let's say you are a pseudo celebrity media news caster...CNBC, MSNBC, GE, let's say they pay your cushy 7 figure salary (that you worked hard to get)... I have know no qualms about hard work and earning your due; but, you/one can see how difficult it would be to do real reporting (human nature)-- you are/ someone, etc. isn't going to bite the hand that feeds. So, if OWS is going to protest against economic/social quality/ decreasing corporate rights/ decreasing lobbyists in D.C. who are only there to spin laws, which create more corporate profits (whether that's via through more rights for corporations, outsourcing, destruction of benefits/unions/ minimum wage, selling of American infrastructure to over seas; non-US entities, more financial deregulation(s), death taxes for wealthy, increase taxes on middle class salaries, tax loop holes, tax havens, or environmental destruction, etc.)-- these things are positive [to protest or bring to the debate or stand up against] and they are good points, BUT if you are a big shot journalist/ celebrity news caster-- you probably don't want to jeopardize your nice salary (so when told to ignore those topics-- you probably will ignore those topics)... It's complicated and I understand what the logic (even if it is unconscious) is by the main stream media's attempt at ignoring Occupy or being told what to report about occupy... But it's not ok and is not freedom of press... Fair and basis and neutral is also a sham to some extent. I would expect Fox news to interview "Hitler" (tongue and cheek here); and then have the counter point as to why his views are ok (i.e. fair and bias)...What a joke. Not ok. Not freedom of press. Not liberal media. Spun garbage or overly PC -- celebrity only news gossip...
Chris Hedges (although somewhat radical, he has some good points on more of how to understand this interwoven-- massive corporate media MESS-- that is how it works to squash out any real news being reported on) -or- meaningful news being reported on...
That's why the alternative press-- our newspapers, NPR (sometimes), the internet, live feeds,. etc. Are so important. Because you know the powers that be will try to spin occupy as all of us being lazy anarchist terrorists that "main stream" America wants nothing to do with. Technology, however, is working in our favor as we can un-spin with (as noted) live feeds, our own videos, our own blogs, etc.
Keep it up occupy. Good job. I salute you.