Ben Affleck To Congo As "Nightline" Correspondent

NEW YORK — "Nightline" will focus on the humanitarian crisis in the Congo with the help of an unusual correspondent _ Ben Affleck.

The 35-year-old actor took a "Nightline" crew on his recent fact-finding mission to Africa with the goal of spreading the word on a story that gets relatively little notice in the United States. His essay airs 11:35 p.m. Thursday on ABC.

He's been to the Congo three times in the past year. He said his motive was to learn about the war and hunger that have killed thousands of people per month in the past decade in hopes that the outside world would be moved to help, and his celebrity opened some doors.

"It's fairly clear that in the modern age that there is a currency to celebrity, or celebrity is a currency, really," Affleck told The Associated Press on Wednesday. "I've discovered that you can spend it in a lot of ways, or you can squander it. You can be taxed, as well. I really started thinking long and hard about how to use that currency as long as I had it."

His representatives approached "Nightline" with the idea of reporting on his journey. Affleck said he was impressed by "Nightline" stories in 2005 where "Hotel Rwanda" actor Don Cheadle visited that country.

"Nightline" executive producer James Goldston admitted to skepticism. ABC News took heat a decade ago for letting Leonardo DiCaprio interview President Clinton, and the idea of a concerned celebrity taking on a world problem has become a news staple.

"I was quite persuaded by how candid he was about the cliche of it, or the potential cliche," Goldston said.

Affleck deals with that issue in the opening of his essay: "I want to try to bring people along to learn and if they might not tune into this unless there was some celebrity involved in it, either because they're interested in the celebrity or because they want to see the celebrity kind of make a fool of himself, then so be it," he says.

He doesn't act as a reporter, Goldston said. The idea was to present the story as a personal journey, following Affleck as he met with survivors of the conflict, relief officials and even some warlords.

"Nightline" hasn't done its own story on the Congo since 2002, although Cynthia McFadden recently took a trip to Africa to report on several issues there.

Affleck said one "Nightline" piece isn't likely to change much, but the goal is to spread the word and hope that people in the United States can identify with some people who are suffering.

Perhaps then they could be moved to help, he said. Affleck hasn't identified himself with any particular relief organization that is helping the Congo.

He believes people will respond to this approach.

"I don't think people respond particularly well to being hectored, or being made to feel guilty, or being made to feel as though they're kind of callow or insensitive for the life they've been leading up until then," he said.

Comments

[GolfingDevil05]

I'm glad to see that Mr. Affleck is taking an active role in a cause like this. He's been unfairly characterized as an unintelligent person (perhaps because of some of the movies he's chosen to do that were less than successful), and clearly that's not the case. I have no problem with celebrities using their notariety as currency, as he puts it, to bring awareness to causes that don't get enough attention.

I understand the point of view of the earlier posters on this article that believe that there's plenty of necessary charity work to do right here in the US, but there's enough room out there for all of these causes. Just because someone isn't an American doesn't mean they're any less deserving of charity, and I applaud anyone doing whatever they can to work for any good cause.

My personal cause is autism awareness, but I don't think one cause ranks above any other. They're all important, and there's room for them all in our hearts and minds. I don't care what you do, just do something, and that goes for all of us.

[Wanjiru]

...I've always wondered what next, after these "fact-finding missions" have found their facts...

...they leave...

..end of story...

.

[servicepap]

I totally agree, speakyourmind. The boy has grown into a man of substance.

[fetacheese]

ben seems to put his money where his mouth is. i abhor celebrities who simply show up at charity events to have their picture taken by the paps and reported on in the tabloids. i think it's really something when anyone travels to these nations and brings attention to the horrors millions of these people have to live with on a daily basis. bravo ben!

[Sarahjan]

Ben Affleck is for real! He will a great job.

[ObamaEdwards]

I have been surprised by how bright and well-informed Ben Affleck is, when I've seen him on Real Time with Bill Maher. I think he's a good choice for this, and bless his heart for doing it. He does not seem to me to be just a celeb embracing the causes of the day, but a sincerely concerned citizen trying to understand the world better.

[hip dibler]

right on! whatever keeps him from making more movies.

[raker]

That crap Nightline is still on? People actually watch it?

[apoyo]

Go Ben!

[JJeff88]

When it comes to celebrities getting involved in world politiics, "you never know."

But Affleck's involvement appears to be genuine.

Nothing wrong with a concerned, articulate, talented human with access to resources trying to help the planet, but a quick skim of the comments posted here make clear that he's got his work cut out for him. In Africa as in the middle east and elsewhere, horrific things done by a broad array of bad actors have created cycles of pay-back which make it difficult to end the bad stuff let alone promote the positive things.

I'm glad there are people like Ben Affleck who at least are getting off their butts and trying.

[SHOPARAZZI]

ben just admit it, u're gunna run for public ofc. we all know it. u're too brilliant not to and to humbled not to. this world needs u. and with barack as potus, u'd be a great inspiration to bipartisanship unity.

[GQTaste]

I wish these guys would do more for this country. You know, the one where their all from? Our country, the United States.

[olivia]

When Hollywood gets involved in American politics, everybody complains about it.

These guys cannot win.

[LibRS]

Good for Ben if he wants to go help the people. Hats off to him. He has probably got his heart in the right place.

However, if he starts any liberal whing and thinks that i should give a crap about his opinion just because he is a celebrity, well, thats another story.

And Olivia, i surely hope you aren't trying to work up sympathy for hollywood because that would be pure insulting.

[walk0nwalls]

You know, when your products stop coming from overseas, that's when American problems cease becoming international problems as well.

Amero-centric ass.

[expatwing]

As an American who has chosen to study Africa and be involved in international politics, I feel the need to explain something to you:
America has a foreign policy!
Not everyone can champion every cause!

That means that people must pick their battles, and some of us choose the international field. It doesn't mean that we don't care about America (although honestly I think the trials and tribulations of average americans pale in comparison to the average African - but that's a different debate) - it just means that we understand that America is being represented all over the globe and we want that representation to be as positive as possible. I want to be represented in a just and compassionate way - which has become difficult with the Iraq debacle!
Just because someone is trying to shed light on a horrific situation in a different country does not mean that they care about their own any less. It just means they care about PEOPLE - no matter where they are from.

[GQTaste]

Did I say that? No. I said, I wish these celebs would do more for their own country. At least some of the time. You know, how Pitt started his project in New Orleans? That kind of stuff.

You know, there is a lot of poor people that inhabit the US too. We have are problems too. And we're the most giving nation. I just wish we could take care of our own people better than we do.

Thats all i'm trying to say.

[TroubleNYC]

This man will be running for public office in about 10 years.

[pearbrandy]

I do hope that Ben Affleck's 'fact finding' in the Congo helps him to locate the following:

The CIA (at the behest of President Eisenhower) arranged the killing of Patrice Lumumba - the first democratically elected president of the newly independent Republic of Congo in the 1960s.

The primary aim of this act of terrorism by the US was to ensure that US business interests involved in extracting all the mineral and diamond assets out of the Congo were protected. Patrice Lumumbu felt, justifiably, that Congolese people deserved to benefit from the mineral wealth on their own lands (just as US citizens do). He proposed a form of social democracy that ensured that revenue from mineral resources went to lifting his people and country out of dire poverty that had resulted from a long history of diabolical exploitation, commencing with the slave trade, which robbed the Congo of most of its able-bodied population to work as slaves in the Carribean and the US.

The CIA installed a general - Mobutu - as their puppet in the Congo. A dictator who has kept his country oppressed and poor while he siphoned off unimaginable personal wealth from his dealing with foreign interests that continue to exploit the Congo's resources while giving nothing back to the people.

[expatwing]

isn't this the history of almost every African country... and today nothing has changed. (although I'm wondering about slaves being taken from the Congo as all of the studies I have done haven't talked about his - have any references/books? I'd be quite interested).
And here's another question pear - do you think if the general American public were to really understand this they'd demand a change from the government? Or would the realization that their lives would be affected (no more diamond engagement rings for them!) stop them? I often hope for the former, but fear for the latter... any thoughts?

[pearbrandy]

Most Americans are profoundly illiterate when it comes to world geography, history or international affairs. So, no I don't expect any of them to know or care that a succession of American governments have intervened violently to overturn democratically elected governments in other sovereign nations when it was in their economic interests to do so. The poverty and destruction in the Congo today can be directly linked to American actions both in the past and present. That's why I find it hypocritical and despicable when American celebrities and others wring their hands over the "terrible situation" in this or that third world nation when the actions of past American governments have either created the situation in the first place or their current policies ignore it. Take Zimbabwe - arguably ruled by a despot, Robert Mugabe, so evil and destructive he makes Saddam Hussein look like santa clause. Where is the response to Zimbabwe? The simple answer is that America has no economic interests there - there is no oil in Zimbabwe. Hence, no 'regime change'.

Perhaps the one thing the general American public could do is vote for Barak Obama and hope (as he suggests we all should) that he will be audaciously different, but I doubt it.

[speakyourmind]

I liked his quote about the currency of celebrity. Very insightful.