Live Aid All of the money raised from the two Live Aid concerts in London and Philadelphia in 1985 was donated to help victims of the terrible famine in Ethiopia. It was organized by the Irish rock star Bob Geldof, who, moved by images of starving children on the television, felt that something had to be done to help. What was amazing about the concerts was that almost all of the top bands at the time agreed to take part, which meant that the concerts became a phenomenal worldwide event watched on TV by almost two billion people. During the live broadcasts, TV viewers were invited to call in and donate money to the cause. Famously, Bob Geldof appeared on TV halfway through the broadcast, angry that people weren’t giving enough money, and shouted at the audience, encouraging them to give more! Although a lot of money was raised and used to help famine victims, some people have criticized the concerts, arguing that a lot of the money was stolen by Ethiopia’s corrupt government and used to pay for weapons.

Live 8

You have probably heard of Live 8. It was one of the most significant series of live concerts ever held, and the event had one very specific aim. Whereas previous charity concerts had aimed to raise money to help victims of disasters, Live 8 had a different intention. It wanted to put pressure on the leaders of the world’s richest countries to increase their support for people in the developing world. That’s why it was organized to take place on 2 July 2005, a few days before an important summit meeting of the leaders of the world’s eight richest countries. The huge concerts, held in a number of major cities, drew enormous crowds and an even bigger television audience. In fact, three billion people watched the TV broadcasts of the shows, and stars as big as Madonna, U2, Paul McCartney and Pink Floyd performed. The world leaders’ meeting in Scotland couldn’t ignore the message, and, under pressure from the publicity that the concerts raised, they decided to double the amount of aid sent to Africa.

Live Earth

Live Earth took place in July 2007. It was a series of concerts which aimed to raise awareness of global warming, and, like Live Aid and Live 8, it featured a wide range of performers in a number of different locations around the world. The performances were shown on TV but, in a move that made it different from Live Aid and Live 8, the events were also streamed live on the internet. Although the event set records for online entertainment as millions watched it on the Live Earth website, TV viewing figures were disappointing in some countries, and planned future concerts were cancelled for a variety of reasons. Nevertheless, the organizers, which included former US vice president Al Gore, considered Live Earth a success as it has undoubtedly made people think more seriously about the future of our planet.

1 Read the text. Are the sentences true (T) or false (F)?

1 Live Aid raised money to help victims of natural disasters across much of Africa. ___

2 Most major international rock stars took time out to support Live Aid. ___

3 Money raised by Live Aid was donated after the live broadcasts. ___

4 People were happy with how the money raised by Live Aid was spent. ___

5 Live 8 had several small objectives. ___

6 Live 8 raised a lot of money for victims of natural disasters. ___

7 World leaders refused to take notice of Live 8’s message. ___

8 Being the most recent of the three, Live Earth used the internet to stream its events. ___

9 Not as many people as expected watched Live Earth on their televisions. ___

10 Each of the three events was important in raising money or awareness. ___

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