In this Nov. 23, 2009 file photo, Ben Stiller arrives at the opening night performance of the new Broadway musical 'Fela!' in New York.[Agencies]
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In this Nov. 23, 2009 file photo, Ben Stiller arrives at the opening night performance of the new Broadway musical 'Fela!' in New York.[Agencies] |
NEW YORK – Oprah Winfrey, Paris Hilton and Ben Stiller are among the celebrities and artists urging support for survivors of the earthquake in Haiti.
Stiller tweeted late Tuesday that "people in Haiti need our help and attention right now." Similar tweets are showing up from the likes of Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, Adam Lambert and Ryan Leslie.
Singer Wyclef Jean has been tweeting about the earthquake and arrived in Haiti, his native country, on Wednesday. Publicist Leslie Chasky said he is focusing on his family, his Haitian charity, Yele, and responding to the disaster. Shakira, on her Web site, called for donations to Yele and to UNICEF.
Winfrey began her television talk show Wednesday by asking viewers to donate to the Red Cross. "This is a time where we, as a global nation, should come together and support those who are in need," Winfrey said.
Lee Daniels, director of the film "Precious," for which Winfrey served as executive producer, said Wednesday that the earthquake made this Sunday's Golden Globes ceremony seem "so unimportant." Daniels' film received three nominations.
"Ultimately, what we do is so unnewsworthy in comparison and so unimportant when you have things like this at hand," Daniels said. "'Precious' seems so unimportant when casualties like that happen."
Viacom Inc., whose companies include MTV Networks and Paramount Pictures, announced Wednesday that it was setting up a $500,000 matching gift program, with donations going to the Red Cross.
Coldplay singer Chris Martin urged people to donate to a Haiti appeal set up by the charity Oxfam.
"I visited Haiti with Oxfam a few years ago. It's a country of extreme poverty and brutal living conditions," Martin said. "Most people in Port-au-Prince live in tin shacks. The earthquake that has struck Haiti will have turned the city into an unimaginable hell."