好莱坞近百明星参加为海地筹款节目

★关于telethon

Telethon是指以筹款为目的的电视直播节目，通常这样的节目时间比较长，几个小时甚至几天，筹款的目的一般为慈善和政治活动。因为这个电视节目很长，所以就很形象地将"television"和"marathon"这两个词合二为一，成了"telethon"。

George Clooney was the driving force behind "Hope for Haiti Now". He joins us from Los Angeles. George, how did the telethon do so far? 60 countries, 6 continents, 58 domestic networks, 60 international networks. I mean how did you organize it? How did you get it up and running?

Well, one of the things we did, the first thing we did was I called the people in MTV and they were kind enough to start the ball rolling. And it seemed as if everybody wanted to participate, all the networks immediately jumped in. And, then, once they jumped in, we were able to get other networks and other networks. Eventually, I think we even got the -- the Chinese government to allow it to run in China. So, we have had a -- I think there's an outpouring because of the images that you're showing. I think there's an outpouring across the world of people understanding that, as bad as it is for them, it's nowhere near as bad as it is where you are right now.

How quickly will the money donated tonight, you think, get to relief organizations?

Well, that was one of our big -- what was most important was that we would use organizations that actually are on the ground and up and running, Red Cross, obviously, Oxfam, World Food Program, places like that. It's important for us to make sure that it's an influx of money immediately, because, you know, there isn't much else we can do, except make sure that there's money and begin the process of healing, because everyone here feels very helpless otherwise.

I mean, as you addressed in the beginning of the program, I mean, there's a lot of people who feel like their donations aren't going to make a difference in a country where, as you pointed out, 80 percent of the people live on less than $2 a day. What do you say to people about, you know, the effect that their money can have?

Well, it's obvious...Is she OK?

Yes, yes. No, he's all right. He just -- I think he needs a little water. Go ahead, George.

Well, no, it's obvious that anything -- a $5 donation from, you know, 300 million people is a lot of money. You can -- you can find a way to do a -- make a huge difference to a country, and particularly a country that's as poor as Haiti. And it's going to need a lot of work. It's going to be -- the biggest issue -- and you will have the same problem as the rest of us -- will be keeping it front-page news, not now, because it is now, but three or four or five or six months from now. That's the trick. And that's why it has to be sustained. And that's part of our job.

Yes. And, I mean, that's what, you know, a lot of the big relief organizations which you guys are supporting tonight, you know, they have -- they are going to have a presence here for a long time to come. But, as we were talking with Gabriella, a lot of these surgeries that these kids are having, it's amputations now, but it needs follow-on care, it needs follow-on surgeries. And that is the fear, that, six months from now, people are going to be like, oh, you know, Haiti, that was six months ago. Didn't we deal with that? But the answer is no, because there's so much infrastructure that needs work here. The needs are so great.

Well, historically, that's true. I mean, certainly, Katrina, of most recent times, Darfur, you could talk about, you know, will -- you can have a big rally but then after it's over, people feel as if, OK, I have done my bit and that's it. And it's no longer part of the conscious, the collective. And, so, our job in the -- in all of our industries, the industries that are seen by people, is to remind people of it and to keep -- to keep it up until it's healthy. And that's a lot of work, and it's going to take a lot of time.

Yes. Well, I certainly hope to come back a lot and continue reporting on this. George, appreciate all very done. And thank you very much for joining us tonight.

词汇汇总：

to start the ball rolling: 从字面来翻译就是：开始滚这个球。作为习惯用语，它的意思就是：开始一个活动。
outpouring: an expression of strong feelings（感情的）迸发，倾泻
Oxfam: Oxford Committee for Famine Relief 牛津饥荒救济委员会
World Food Program: 联合国世界粮食计划署
influx: the arrival of large numbers of people or large amounts of money, goods etc, especially suddenly（人、资金或事物的）涌入，流入
amputation: cutting off someone's arm, leg, finger etc during a medical operation 截肢
follow-on: something that is done or made in addition to something else, or done to continue something that was done before 后续的