Clooney to host network-wide Haiti telethon
George Clooney to host network-wide Haiti telethon
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By inthenews. |  |
Friday, 15, Jan 2010 12:29
By Lewis Bazley.
A telethon to help victims of the Haiti earthquake will be hosted by George Clooney and broadcast on several US TV networks, it has been announced.
The quake has left an estimated 50,000 dead on the island and may have left as many as three million people homeless.
After US president Barack Obama pledged $100 million in relief, Golden Globe nominee Clooney has confirmed he is to host a telethon appeal in support of victims of the disaster.
The event will be broadcast on MTV networks worldwide as well as ABC, NBC, HBO and CNN in the US on January 22nd.
It has not yet been confirmed which guests will appear on the telethon but its announcement follows several appeals for aid from celebrities.
Former Fugees musician Wyclef Jean, who was born in Haiti, has reportedly raised more than $1 million (£612,000) for the relief effort through his Yele Haiti Earthquake Fund and has since travelled to the island.
"I cannot stress enough what a human disaster this is, and idle hands will only make this tragedy worse," he commented. "The over two million people in Port-au-Prince face catastrophe alone. We must act now."
Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have pledged the same amount from their own charitable foundation and are to work with Jean as part of the humanitarian efforts on the island.
Traffic congestion and problems with the Haitian infrastructure are believed to be hampering aid workers, with a lack of food and water also adding to suffering.
DEC donation line 0370 60 60 900 or visit http://www.dec.org.uk