Vote-based show sells heroes short

Apparently, there are now reality programs looking to vote to name one hero the “best” hero over other heroes.

Recently, CNN began running “CNN Heroes,” drawing from nominations all around the world to find heroes in certain categories ranging from “Championing Children” to “Fighting for Justice.”

CNN is recognizing these individuals who I would never have otherwise heard of, but who definitely deserve praise and support for their efforts. But the fact that CNN was asking me to vote for one single hero over another cannot be overlooked.

It is reflective of the American culture of social action when people feel the need to pick their “favorite” cause, rather than support all meaningful efforts by people trying to make a difference in the world.

Then I found a poll to vote for “my favorite hero.” I sat wondering which one of these true heroes would get my vote.

Would it be the man who was helping medical clinics in Ethiopia, or maybe the woman who was running a boarding school in Uganda for girls who had been abducted by rebel fighters?

Or, maybe I could vote for the man who dedicated his life to helping veterans receive benefits from the U.S. veterans’ benefits system.

Then it struck me: Why should I have to vote for any one of these “candidates”? Indeed, would a vote for one not seem to discount the work being done by the others?

What CNN is most likely doing, and hopefully without realizing it, is presenting a group of individuals who each deserve equal recognition.

Then, through the poll, they will conclude that one individual is “better” than another. This kind of programming may make for good television, but it by no means promotes the support of all worthwhile causes.

For instance, if a man who helps give medical care to children in Kenya wins out over the woman who has raised money to fly people to hospitals for care that they could not access, that says to the woman, “Well, sorry, but your cause just wasn’t good enough.”

I am not saying that CNN at all means to intentionally express this sentiment to its candidates; nonetheless it’s the sentiment that will come across.

Of course, even at that, the problem does not exactly lie in the lack of recognition that some of these heroes will receive, for I doubt that any of these people do what they do for the recognition.

To illustrate the real problem here ““ that singling out one hero over another takes away well-deserved recognition and support from other heroes ““ I offer an example that is a bit more local.

Let us say hypothetically that the city of Los Angeles decides to honor one student group from UCLA who is working for a good cause, and they decide to choose a group to honor through a vote.

People could pick Dance Marathon, an organization that raises funds for pediatric AIDS, or they could pick the UCLA Run/Walk organization. Or people could vote for students who are working to bring after-school programs to inner city youths.

Eventually, by means of a vote, one of these groups would be honored with some award for making a difference in Los Angeles.

There would most likely be a ceremony to honor these students, and people from all around Los Angeles would see this and begin donating money to this group.

Meanwhile, the groups that didn’t win would not be given the same recognition and would not receive the same financial and social support from Los Angeles.

The end problem with this vote can be easily applied to the CNN program. Eventually, some people will read about the heroes who won this vote and will then donate money to their efforts.

Meanwhile, maybe money won’t go to the man trying to save gorillas from becoming extinct in Africa, or maybe money won’t be given to the man who has created a camp for children with Tourette’s Syndrome.

I am not saying that everyone should donate money or time to every single cause that exists.

Such a request, while ideal, would be realistically impossible.

That said, when CNN asks people to vote for one hero over the other in an attempt to declare one person the overall “best hero,” it sure makes it a lot easier for all of us to overlook the heroes that didn’t win, and that is a problem. Instead of running a program looking to eventually single out one hero as the “best,” CNN should simply dedicate a week of programming to highlight all of these heroes, allowing all of us to give them all the recognition they so deserve.

E-mail Margolis at mmargolis@media.ucla.edu. Send general comments to viewpoint@media.ucla.edu.

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