Celebrity Philanthropy and Activism

Hilde Van den Bulck (Ph.D.) is full professor of Communication Studies and head of the Media, Policy & Culture research group at the University of Antwerp. She holds an MA in communications from the KULeuven (B), an MA in mass communications from the University of Leicester (UK) and a Ph.D. in social sciences from the KULeuven (B). She combines complementary expertise in media structures and media cultures. For the past ten years, an important part of her research has focused on the cultural significance and societal role of mediated communication from and about celebrities in general and celebrity philanthropy and activism in particular.

• List of tables; Acknowledgements; Introduction, Why this book?, Roadmap for the reader of this book, PART 1: CELEBRITY PHILANTHROPY AND ACTIVISM: ORIGINS, CELEBRITY AND THE MEDIA; Chapter 1: Philanthropy and Activism, Introduction, Defining philanthropy and activism, Looking back: the history of philanthropy and activism, Marketisation and corporatisation of philanthropy and activism, Criticism of marketisation and corporatisation, Bibliography; Chapter 2: Celebrity Philanthropy and Activism, Introduction, Conceptualizing Celebrity, Types of celebrity, Celebrity philanthropy and activism, Philanthropy/activism and the celebrity construct, Engaging celebrities: advantages and disadvantages, Bibliography; Chapter 3: Mediated Celebrity Philanthropy and Activism, Mediated communication and the celebrity construct, Celebrity journalism and celebrity news, Covering celebrity philanthropy and activism, Mediated ‘stories’ of celebrity philanthropy and activism, A look at audiences, Bibliography; PART 2: CELEBRITY PHILANTHROPY AND ACTIVISM IN INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND DIPLOMACY, DEVELOPMENT AND HUMANITARIANISM; Chapter 4: The White Man’s Burden: Celebrity Philanthropy and Activism in World Relations and Development Issues, Introduction, Roots of celebrity engagement in international relations, development and humanitarianism, Humanitarian traditions, marketisation, the west and the rest and celebrity engagement, Celebrities and marketised philanthropy and activism in world relations, Bibliography; Chapter 5: Celebrity Philanthropists as Authoritative Voices: Framing World Relations and Development Issues, Celebrity philanthropic and activist documentaries: a framing analysis, Stories of celebrity philanthropy and activism in world relations; Chapter 6: The White Woman’s Burden: Taking Home World Relations, Introduction: The Celebrity-Construct, the Political Persona, and Gender, Taking it home: Marrying ‘the Political', Taking it Home: Celebrity transnational adoptions, Conclusion, Bibliography, Postscript; Index