Live Earth rocks the world

The Live Earth concerts broke a worldwide record for online entertainment show by generating more than 9 million Internet streams, according to Microsoft.

The new record surpasses the one previously held by Live 8, a massive fundraising event held in 2005 that involved ten benefit concerts in different cities around the world with the purpose of fighting poverty in Africa.

Once onstage, many artists chose to make a personal statement regarding climate change and the need for everyone to join in the effort to heal the planet and save it from further damage.

Such was the case of Linkin Park’s vocalist Mike Shinoda, who said to the thousands of people in attendance at the Tokyo concert and the millions who were watching through Internet:

(The) climate crisis is one of the defining issues of our generation… (but)
we can make a difference in a very big way if we try.

Meanwhile other artists chose to send their message across through a song.
Such was the case of Melissa Etheridge, who sang “I Need to Wake Up,” the
theme song to Al Gore’s documentary “An Inconvenient Truth, urging participants
to “wake up now.”

R&B singer and songwriter Alicia Keys and country singer Keith Urban also dedicated a song to the planet, performing a cover version of The Rolling Stones 1969 hit “Gimme Shelter.”

Among the personalities in attendance were English anthropologist Jane Goodall and environmental lawyer and activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr., as well as actors Leonardo Di Caprio, Cameron Diaz and Scrubs’ cast member Zach Braff, among many others.

The televised event included the live broadcast of the concerts, as well as small segments that gave tips to viewers on how to lead an “environmentally-friendly” life.
Many have criticized the event, doubting the "difficulty in marrying pop music with serious themes lke the environment."

In addition, after the end of the event, many articles pointed out the show’s low TV ratings.
Most of them focus on the three-hour NBC telecast, which drew only 2.8 million viewers. But according to an article from The Washinton Post, Nielsen ratings showed that 19 million people watched at least six minutes of the concerts that aired throughout the day on NBC’s sister networks, such as Bravo, CNBC and Telemundo.

Still, it is expected that Live Earth’s viewership will continue to grow even now, after the show has ended, this time through the Internet, where those who didn’t have the time to watch it can do so. This is because the purpose of these concerts- the fight for climate change is far from over, in fact, it’s just beginning.

In the end, the message of the Live Earth event can be summed up with the words of Chester Bennington, another Linkin Park vocalist:

"We’re at a point where we have to do something… be willing to take action and be
part of something great. "