Robert DeNiro’s political rants about Donald Trump are crude, ad hominem attacks and a poor reflection on his character and intelligence, as I have noted more than once, most recently here. It doesn’t matter, however, how much of a jerk DeNiro is and how deluded he may be about the worth of his partisan opinions, at least as far as the legitimate plaudits he has earned for his acting (I don’t especially enjoy him as an actor, but I appreciate his talent and craft from a technical perspective) or other aspects of his life.
For example, DeNiro is apparently a generous contributor to charities. That’s nice. Among the non-profits he has given to are 46664, American Foundation for AIDS Research, Artists for Peace and Justice, Barbara Davis Center for Childhood Diabetes, Boys & Girls Clubs of America, Celebrity Fight Night Foundation, Elton John AIDS Foundation, FilmAid International, Film Foundation, Friars Foundation, STILLERSTRONG, Fulfillment Fund, HEART, Hearts of Gold, Hudson River Park Friends, LeBron James Family Foundation, Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center, Robert F Kennedy Memorial, and Stand Up To Cancer. The actor has a lot of money, but this is still an impressive array: a surprising number of stars of stage, screen and sports give very little to charity.
De Niro was going to be honored by the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) at a ceremony in Washington DC next week with the groups’ Leadership Foundation’s Service to America Award, in recognition of his “charitable work and public service.” Now he isn’t. The organization rescinded the award, saying through a spokesperson,
“This event is proudly bipartisan, uniting those from across the political spectrum to celebrate the impactful work of local broadcasters and our partners.While we strongly support the right of every American to exercise free speech and participate in civic engagement, it is clear that Mr. De Niro’s recent high-profile activities will create a distraction from the philanthropic work that we were hoping to recognize. To maintain the focus on service of the award winners, Mr. De Niro will no longer be attending the event.”
Ethics foul. Just because the NAB is bi-partisan (I very much doubt that it is) doesn’t mean its honorees have to be, and indeed staying politically neutral was not a criteria for the association’s highest award.
The closest analogue to this situation was the one discussed in this post, when Disney removed Bill Cosby’s statue from its Hollywood Studios theme park. Cosby’s honor came as a result of his contributions to TV and comedy, which were and remain epic. Disney was just virtue-signalling by removing Bill bust, an early manifestation of the malady that has metastasized into a cancerous infection on the iconic company. I wrote in part, “O.J. Simpson is still honored in the College Football Hall of Fame because he was one of the greatest college stars ever. His post-career hobby as a murderer, like Bill’s extra-curricular activities as a serial rapist, have nothing to do with the honor, just as Cosby earned and still deserves his honor for what he achieved on stage and screen.”
Later, however, Ethics Alarms applauded the decision by several universities to rescind honorary degrees they awarded to the Cos back when everyone thought he was a paragon of fatherhood, leadership, and a role model for the black community. That was different from the Disney situation, I wrote: “Cosby was specifically honored [in Brown’s citation bestowing the degree] for his “ability to integrate [his] personal character into fictional personae that simulate real life while embracing such cherished American values as honesty, fair play, love of family, and respect for humanity.” It’s hard to even read that now without giggling, gagging, or going mad. It was a degree achieved under false pretenses. Universities withdraw real degrees when it turns out that a grad cheated or lied to get one. This is no different. Cosby’s whole public image was a lie.”
Robert DeNiro’s record as a philanthropist is no lie, and he deserves the NAB honor as much as ever, regardless of allowing himself to be used as a vulgar mouthpiece for Joe Biden. So he’s an asshole: heck, most of the greatest philanthropists in U.S. history have been or are assholes. Nice guts may not finish last, as Leo Durocher, not a nice guy, famously said. But they don’t often get rich either.
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Pointer: JutGory
Ethics Alarms 
He, or his people, issued a very nice, humble acknowledgement of the withdrawal of the award. He should just stick to reading the scripts he’s handed.
If this organization believes that DiNiro’s award will affect other member’s ability to raise funds I can understand their perspective. DiNiro called Trump supporters clowns as did The New York governor. This will not play well with half the population.
One of the unfortunate consequences of the current political climate is that TDS is turning brother against brother, sister against sister and tearing entire families apart. It should be expected that belligerents like DiNiro will have a deleterious effect on third party brands.
It does not matter if the brand disavows his remarks or simply states that the opinions of the maker are not those of the organization. Because people have choices with what to do with their money donations to members of this organization have a high likelihood of being adversely affected. The organization has a duty to protect itself by insulating its members from the perception that granting an bestowing an award NOW to DiNiro is a reward not wholly for his charitable giving.
DiNiro’s giving may deserve an award but not so close to his tirades against Trump. People need time to forget about the bile he foisted onus all.
Except that DeNiro has been giving obscene Trump-bashing speeches for years, and long before the group announced the award!!!!!!
Maybe, but this time Bobby not only insulted The Donald, he insulted about 1/2 of the country. A lot of Trumpistas also are charitable. Bobby’s delusional rant might day we donors to rethink their donations.
jvb
Again, though, have you heard DeNiro’s earlier anti-Trump rants? Many of them were much worse than what he said outside that courthouse
Proximity matters especially in light of DiNiro being part of Biden’s campaign group last week.
Personally, I believe such public awards are designed not recognize a person’s past contributions but to stroke the awardee’s narcissistic tendencies to ensure they keep on giving.
Real charity does not need public adulation of those that provide resources . A simple thank you and a certificate of appreciation that he could hang on the wall should be sufficient thanks. If you feel strongly about the charitable work being done, then you don’t need it or desire such awards to keep giving.
Why should the NAB be required to give DeNiro a platform for further unhinged ranting against You-Know-Who (at the awards ceremony)? Give him the award but don’t let him speak!
I read a report that Diniro is in finaincial trouble regarding the non payment of millions in taxes. Can anyone verify this? If so it would be intresting to see if the “debt is forgiven” by this administrations IRS.
From a personal perspective the cominng of the Beatles, the designated hitter rule of the AL, and the movemement of the Dodgers from Brooklyn to LA were all signs of the impending apcolypse. Yesterday I read a new omen was added- the introduction of breakdancing to the Olympic contests.
The Trial was a collossal waste of money, and time. Anyone with the IQ of a rock could have predicted the outcome. In the history of kangaroo courts ,this was definetly the “kangaroooest.”
NRA 1 NYS O- good score!