So the annual meeting of the US Fund for UNICEF last week at Jazz at Lincoln Center was an interesting event. The event had two parts — a meeting from 2pm to 5:30 and then a cocktails and dinner starting at 6:30. Lucy Liu headlined the meeting part. Jenna Bush spoke about the book she “wrote” for teenagers about her experience as a UNICEF volunteer in Latin America. The head of UNICEF, Ann Veneman — who was President George W. Bush’s first Secretary of Agriculture, and the first woman to have that job — also spoke as did some other UNICEF folks about their mission and work. The highlight of the two panels during the meeting part was Jim Wooten, a journalist no longer working for “the man” and so he was not afraid to tell it like it is.
The dinner part had Ishmael Beah, who wrote a very powerful book called A Long Way Gone about his life as a boy soldier in Sierra Leone. The book was marketed out of Starbucks with UNICEF getting some proceeds and it still is on the New York Times best seller list. Dr. Sanjay Gupta also spoke at dinner and so did Tea Leoni, who is really the complete package — seriously smart, from a good family and stunning. She is the kind of person who would be an investment banker or lawyer if not for show-biz.
Here are some random thoughts I jotted down during the event.
* They are being very candid about their problem with messaging. Everyone has heard of UNICEF, but no one really knows what they do. They actually said this clearly and in response they have radically simplified their messaging. Their new tag line is: Whatever it takes to save a child’s life.
* They have lots of great video material, but are only scratching the surface in how they are using it.
* Jim Wooten rules. He basically exposed a part of the television news business that we don’t hear much about. He described how reporters have to negotiate with their bosses. Why do you want to cover that story? Is it a ratings winner? How much will it cost to send you to Africa? Can you do 5 stories on this trip instead of one so the cost per story is less?
* Celia Dugger from the New York Times was on the same panel with Jim Wooten. She said… To the credit of my employer, I can go anywhere I want whenever I want to pursue any story about poverty and global development. It felt like a remnant of an old-world business model where the journalism was the most important thing. Lets hope the Times can keep that up in the face of diminishing revenue.
* Marcus Samuelsson the celebrity chef and founder of a great New York restaurant called Aquavit also spoke. He is an Ethiopian Swede. He was born in 1970 and his parents died of tuberculosis. He and his sister took refuge in a Swedish hospital and a nurse arranged their adoption to a Swedish couple. He gives back by making all of the corporate partners that want him for books and kitchenware give a percentage of the profits to fight poverty and disease in Africa. He’s a very magnetic speaker, handsome and engaging and is a great asset to any organization that gets him.
* Jenna Bush. Oy. I mean, I can understand why having her write a book for teenagers about volunteerism and poverty is a good idea, but seriously. She did teach public school in Washington D.C. and she did good work for UNICEF in Panama. But… to quote from Wikipedia… “In November 2006, she and her sister were asked to leave Argentina by the U.S. Embassy. The twins had traveled to Buenos Aires to celebrate their birthday; however, amid reports of lax Secret Service security and the Bush twins “running naked down a hotel corridor,” their departure was strongly recommended by Argentine officials.[10]” Compared to someone like Marcus Sameulsson, Jenna is the lightest of lightweights.
* The cocktail hour was fun. The Allen Room at Jazz at Lincoln Center is really nice. The US Fund for UNICEF has some great employees. I met some folks who were at ACLU before and my friends in the Interactive Donor Communications group rule. These are the mid-level folks who could be anywhere in corporate America and be very successful and they actually are trying to do some good in the world.
* At the dinner, Dr. Sanjay Gupta was OK. They showed a reel of him in Africa and to his credit he has gone to some difficult places, including Darfur and the Chadian border. He didn’t say anything remarkable. It was a little too polished and self-congratulatory for my taste. [In contrast, see how Ann Curry from NBC spoke at the AJWS event.]
* Ishmael Beah on the other hand was terrific. He was casual, comfortable and relaxed in front of this high-powered audience. He said, if you want to know my story, you can read my book. And he said that we are all addressing huge problems. But UNICEF saved me. And there are many other me’s around who have also been saved. And so there is no Ishmael Beah approach — there are many approaches. But don’t forget, when the problems can seem overwhelming, that there are people like me who have meaningful lives because of the work you do.
That’s all for now.
