Speaking of the RED Campaign

Hmmm . . . marketing and charities (this morning on IMBD).

Bono's Red Campaign Slams Financial Assessment

Sources close to rock star Bono's charity campaign Red are slamming media reports claiming the organization has spent more on marketing than raising funds. The high-profile campaign raises money for the Global Fund to Fights AIDS in Africa by selling red products such as iPods, clothing and mobile phones. Advertising Age reported the campaign "raised a meager $18 million" despite a "marketing outlay by Gap, Apple and Motorola (which) has been enormous - with some estimates as high as $100 million". A source close to the campaign slams the report, telling the New York Daily News, "First of all, Red didn't launch products until mid-October. And they raised $25 million. "Before that, the fund had taken in about $5 million over a four-year period. Before that, they had one T-shirt out and a pair of sunglasses. And on marketing, Bono's Red campaign didn't spend anything. "The companies they work with spent a few million each. The $100 million is a phantom number Ad Age pulled out of thin air. It's off by tens of millions of dollars." But Red director Bobby Shriver has put a positive spin on the controversy: "This can only help us all stay focused on the fact that 5,500 Africans are still dying needlessly of AIDS every day."