Recently, CBS announced a new television series called The Activist. In the wake of this announcement, the internet has lashed back against the concept.
The main concern is turning activism into a competition, but this isn’t a new concept. The Activist is simply bringing competitive philanthropy mainstream. The question is: Is mainstream competitive philanthropy a good thing?
What is The Activist?
Premiering at the end of October 2021 on CBS, The Activist features Usher, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, and Julianne Hough.
The Activist pairs advocates from the worlds of health, education, and the environment with famous figures in a series of competitions that’ll take the winners — and their ideas for seismic world change — to the G20 Summit in Italy.
– CBS
What is Competitive Philanthropy?
Competitive philanthropy is when nonprofit organizations compete against each other for the same funding. This sounds scary, but actually has proven to result in more funds for both organizations in the end.
For example, GiveWP customer, The City Mission, competed with a similar organization in a different town to raise $10,000 in a 24-hour race. The results were astoundingly positive. Both organizations well-exceeded their goals.
The difference between this kind of campaign and the one being held on The Activist is that a TV show brings this type of fundraising mainstream.
Is Mainstream Competitive Philanthropy Healthy for Society?
Sometimes, that which works outside of mainstream culture can be snuffed out once it goes viral. In this case, people are concerned that The Activist is exploiting underrepresented and struggling people for entertainment. It begs the question:
Will mainstream competitive philanthropy have a negative or positive impact on nonprofit and philanthropic culture?
The Downside
Concerns for The Activist surfaced immediately after the announcement.
https://twitter.com/thesammg/status/1436039904484642819?s=20
People are concerned that turning activism into a game show will change the world of philanthropy.
A competition series based on activism? This is a poorly conceived concept pic.twitter.com/uUkWhKoto8
— ᴊᴇʟᴀ (@jelevision) September 9, 2021
As competitive philanthropy becomes more mainstream, how the public receives it will determine how it affects all nonprofits. Will this make it harder for smaller nonprofits to raise money? Are donors going to expect nonprofits to be backed by a celebrity to be credible? Will there be more TV shows about activists or nonprofits? Does that mean if you’re not on TV, you won’t be able to raise money?
The questions go on…
The Upside
However, there is an upside to this kind of attention on philanthropy in general. Competition will make people watch and it seems that CBS has more goals than to increase ratings.
One thing seems more clear than ever: Planet Earth is a singular village, demanding if not relying on individual engagement. From the Global Citizen movement comes an awe-inspiring look at what can come of it.
– CBS
Bringing widespread attention to activism will educate the public on how the nonprofit world works, give people insights into how hard activists work for their causes, and potentially inspire them to give to more organizations. Essentially, this could have a positive impact on smaller nonprofits, rather than wiping them out. Maybe more reality TV series will be made about activists and more people will become philanthropic.
Only time will tell.
[Update] The Activist Gets Retooled After Backlash
In the wake of criticism for making activism a competition, CBS has decided to “retool” the show. This means that they may begin filming again from the beginning.
Rather than a competition, The Activist will air in a documentary style.
How Will The Activist Impact All Nonprofits?
When mainstream media makes a large shift like this, it affects the industry they exploit. Sometimes for the better and others, worse.
What do you think about the new CBS TV series, The Activist?
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