Can celebrities help people care more?

gulfnews.com Caring comes from within

A ny type of influential ambassador, regardless of whether they’re a celebrity or not, can be used to achieve more news coverage, or make a cause more popular. With regards to using celebrities or influencers as a tool to make people care more, I completely disagree.

I believe caring is something that is intrinsic to us. Some people can care more and express it better. That is not to say that others don’t care because they don’t show it. Caring is more like an intrinsic value; a part of your character. People who truly care would contribute to a cause regardless of whether they know or like the celebrity who is the ambassador of the same. From Ms Aroushi Malhotra Dubai

Personal relationships

C onsidering the loyalty that fans have towards their favourite celebrities, a celebrity promoting their contribution to a cause can have a positive impact. It raises awareness about the ways people could contribute to a certain social cause, and it pushes their fans to do the same. It’s sort of a personal relationship that extends as an impact on our actions. From Ms Yuvika Bhatia Dubai

Help others contribute

Y es, I believe seeing celebrities giving back to society is good because it promotes the idea of social consciousness. However, I believe that the ways to donate should be more accessible, and celebrities should aid that. I also think celebrities could become ambassadors for existing credible charity organisations, free of cost, rather than feeling the pressure to start their own. From Mr Ramesh Krishnan Portland, Oregon

Good role models

I believe celebrities do make an impact on the way people think. When they see their favourite superheroes supporting a social cause, they are also inspired to contribute to helping society. Therefore it is absolutely important that celebrities become good role models. From Ms Anagha Rajesh UAE

Don’t throw money

S ometimes celebrities give so much money, you feel like the victims are set for life, through the donations. It is a good thing, but I think celebrities are looking for goodwill for themselves, by throwing money at a problem. The best thing would be if they made an event where, for every $1,000 (Dh3,678) donated, they would match it with a contribution of $10,000 (Dh36,730). From Mr Keith Richard Walsh Boston, US

Breaking barriers

T o some people who are philanthropic by nature, celebrities don’t help them care more. But there are many who are not aware. I have come across people who have adequate knowledge about celebrities, but not enough about the state that many people live in. For such people, involving celebrities to promote causes is definitely an advantage. Apart from having the financial power to contribute, celebrities also hold the power of awareness. Their activities make news more than that of many activists. People tend to trust a cause more, when there is a public figure promoting it. People generally care more for people from their own community or religion, which is a sad reality these days, so involving celebrities breaks the communal barrier. Involving celebrities does make some care more and for some it acts as a tool for awareness. From Mr Mahnaaz Shaikh India

Always care about causes

N o, it doesn’t make me care more. I already cared about Unicef and victims of Hurricane Irma before I knew these celebrities got involved. They just have the advantage of using their wealth to do something about it, which the rest of us can’t. I can donate a few hundreds or thousands but they can donate millions. It doesn’t mean I care any less than they do about the same cause. Their involvement just makes me grateful that the victims are getting more money than I could have given them. From Ms Shipra Roma Dubai

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