It was a big night for Al Gore at the Academy Awards. After appearing earlier in the show to tease the audience about making an announcement, Al Gore returned to the stage to accept an Oscar for best documentary. Ellen DeGeneres also referred to Gore at the start of the show, saying “And then, Al Gore is here, America did vote for him, and then — [applause] Very complicated.” (Videos from Think Progress.) In accepting the award, Gore said,
My fellow Americans, people all over the world, we need to solve the climate crisis.
It’s not a political issue, it’s a moral issue. We have everything we need to get started with the possible exception of the will to act. That’s a renewable resource. Let’s renew it.
Hollywood Today looks at Gore, and the role of Hollywood in politics:
If this doesn’t seem that impressive, think about the fact that Al Gore had been championing environmental causes, particularly global warming, for much of his thirty-year political career without making much of a dent in mainstream social consciousness. In one year, however, with the help of some Hollywood wizardry, he took an academic slide-show presentation and turned it into an international blockbuster. Dare we say social phenomenon.
This Oscar could be just the beginning of a year full of such honors for Mr. Gore. He was also recently named one of many nominees for the Nobel Peace Prize, for his work on the environment. However, he has a good chance, according to some. “A prerequisite for winning the Nobel Peace Prize is making a difference, and Al Gore has made a difference,” said Boerge Brende, a Norwegian member of Parliament who nominated Gore.
Gore has created a whole new career for himself as a media mogul with the help of his celebrity friends. He is leading a revolution in socially responsible media, and as his credibility grows in Hollywood, more and more celebrities are jumping on the bandwagon.
Gore does not seem to be shying away from the camera. His newest endeavor is “Live Earth”, a 24-hour concert on 7/7/07 that will take place across all seven continents, including Antarctica (for the penguins I guess), which will bring over 100 of the world’s biggest musical acts together to raise awareness of global warming. Just in case you missed the movie.
Ever since he has declared himself a “recovering politician” a vast portion of the American public seems to hang on his every word and looks ready to follow him into a twenty-first century environmental battlefield in Toyota Priuses. Would we really be paying this much attention to Al Gore if he weren’t surrounding himself with chiseled Hollywood faces?
Americans these days seem more willing to believe social commentary when it comes from George Clooney or Live Earth spokesperson Cameron Diaz than from the President of the United States.
What does it mean when Al Gore becomes more effective as a celebrity than a statesman? For one, it seems to justify the larger role Hollywood has begun to take in politics. If “Inconvenient Truth” can help fix global warming then who’s going to scoff at Brad and Angelina when they make quixotic statements about ending world hunger. After all, at least people will listen to them.
Update: Oscar Win Stimulates Further Speculation of Gore Run