Was Bono Successful on "American Idol?"

A colleague of mine at Fresno Pacific University, Eleanor Nickel, took up the theme of "American Idol Gives Back" with me and together we had a set of point/counterpoint pieces published in the Fresno Bee on Saturday. Eleanor proposed that the two-part episode (aired April 24 & 25) was successful in that the show generated a fantastic amount of money and raised awareness of poverty in America and in Africa. I continued with my argument that the charity event fell far short of generating any kind of real change in people's lives and functioned more as an appeasement of conscience. My piece was a condensed version of my post "The Problem with Bono on American Idol."

Eleanor's pro "American Idol" piece is here. Mine is here.