Earth under whelmed by environment pop extravaganza
They rocked the world, but as the clean-up at nine climate change gigs around the globe begins, many wonder if the galaxy of pop stars did much to change it.
U.S. and British media were generally under whelmed on Sunday by Live Earth, the mega-concert organized by former U.S. vice president and green campaigner Al Gore, which, though built on the model of Live Aid and Live 8, created a less positive buzz.
In Germany, however, newspapers were more upbeat about Saturday’s gigs designed to pressure leaders to sign a new treaty by 2009 that would cut global warming pollution by 90 percent in rich nations and more than half worldwide by 2050.
Several articles examined the green credentials of artists on the day, including Madonna, whose annual “carbon footprint” was estimated at around 100 times the average Briton’s.
The News of the World tabloid, Britain’s biggest-selling newspaper, detailed estimates of Madonna’s carbon emissions from nine houses, a fleet of cars, a private jet and the Confessions tour, calling her a “climate-change catastrophe.”
The Sunday Telegraph quoted U.S. reports of her alleged financial links to companies accused of being major polluters.
Her spokeswoman in Britain was not immediately available for comment, but in a statement appearing in the Independent on Sunday, her New York spokeswoman said:
“Madonna’s agreeing to sing at the Live Earth Event is merely one of the first steps in her commitment towards being environmentally responsible.”
The negative headlines took some gloss off Madonna’s widely praised appearance at Wembley Stadium in London, where she sang her specially written anthem “Hey You” before a raunchy performance of three of her biggest hits.
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