'Idol' gives back again

from the Detroit Free Press

Superstars join show's effort to raise millions for kids and causes worldwide

BY JULIE HINDS

So many celebrities wanting to pitch in and help. So little time.
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That's the problem "American Idol" executive producer Nigel Lythgoe faced in the planning for tonight's "Idol Gives Back" special.

"How am I going to get all of this in?" said Lythgoe by phone from Los Angeles, contemplating a list of stars that includes Brad Pitt, Robin Williams, Billy Crystal, Miley Cyrus, Snoop Dogg, Reese Witherspoon, John Legend and former "Idol" winner Carrie Underwood.

"I don't sleep at night at the moment. I really don't, because I know that we will have to cut somebody out and they'll go mad."

"Idol Gives Back" airs at 7:30 tonight on Fox and runs an expanded 2 1/2 hours. Donations will be taken by phone and the Internet during the show.

When the idea debuted last year, it transformed "American Idol," at least for one night, from a fluffy TV diversion into a nationwide teachable moment.

The show brought in $76 million for charities that help children and families in poverty in Africa and the U.S. The amount of money involved was huge, and so was the awareness raised among "Idol" fans.

The message that even small donations matter had an impact on younger viewers like Sarah McEneaney, 14, of Rochester, who worked with a friend to put on a carnival in her yard last spring that raised more than $75 for "Idol Gives Back."

"We thought it would be fun and we felt like helping out," says McEneaney, who was inspired after seeing footage of other kids in need.

This year, "Idol Gives Back" again will feature clips of celebrities visiting children facing heartrending hardships.

Tonight's broadcast combines an event taped Sunday at the Kodak Theater with live elements. It features more celebrities than before, plus messages from presidential candidates and Sens. Hillary Clinton, John McCain and Barack Obama.

But it will be minus a gimmick that wasn't so popular last year.

On the first "Idol Gives Back," Ryan Seacrest kept hinting that the episode would have the "most shocking result in our history." And once everyone but the season's ultimate winner, Jordin Sparks, was declared safe, it seemed as if she was getting the boot.

As it turned out, nobody got kicked off that night. The fake-out prompted some grumbling among fans, who have a love-hate relationship with "Idol" ploys. As Michael Slezak wrote on the Entertainment Weekly Web site, "I can't fault 'em for playing fast and loose with my emotional well-being. It's what they do best."

Still, Lythgoe said he thinks it was an effective moment. "It took everyone by surprise, so there's no question it worked," he says. "But once you've done it, you've done it. You can't do it again."
Helping kids in need

This time, the results show will air Thursday night, putting tonight's focus totally on the stars and, more importantly, the cause.

Lythgoe feels "Idol Gives Back" brings the same frankness to issues of poverty that the regular show does to its singing critiques.

"We've done filming here, just this season, in Kentucky that is only just a little better than places I've seen in Africa. We have to recognize the fact, and I think this program brings that to light. It doesn't sweep things under the carpet."

Six charities will benefit from this year's broadcast: the Children's Defense Fund; the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria; Make It Right (a campaign launched by Pitt to help New Orleans rebound from Hurricane Katrina); Malaria No More; Save the Children, and the Children's Health Fund.

Ford Motor Co. is among the returning corporate sponsors.

Donations from last year's "Idol Gives Back" have helped Save the Children with several programs, like reaching more than 14,000 children in rural America and more than 10,000 affected by last year's wildfires in southern California, according to Mark Shriver, vice president and managing director of U.S. programs for the organization.

On a personal note, Shriver, the son of Eunice Kennedy Shriver and brother of Maria Shriver, recalls how a 12-year-old neighbor wrote him a note describing how the show changed her life and made her want to work to help poor children..

"When you can touch people's hearts, when you can reach and touch people to say there's poverty in America and we should do something about it, that's an amazing thing," he says.

On Monday, the New York Times reported that formal accounting for last year's "Idol Gives Back" hasn't been released yet, although it's expected to be out by the federal deadline for charities in May.

Interviews done by the Times indicated most of what was raised has been given or pledged to the charities involved, with about $5 million going to administrative costs (a percentage described as "a generally lower amount than used by most charities for overhead"). Roughly $55 million was contributed by individuals, $14 million by corporations, and $7 million by corporations or foundations making direct or matching grants to the designated charities.
A song for a pledge

Highlights of Sunday night's concert included appearances by Pitt, Witherspoon, Jimmy Kimmel and Sarah Silverman, a bit where Robin Williams played a Russian Idol, and a duet between Fergie and Heart.

Lythgoe says "Idol" contestants will answer phone calls coming in live tonight and maybe even sing to some of the callers.

And if gossip spreads about any possible surprises (as it did last year over Celine Dion's electronic duet with Elvis Presley), that's fine by him.