Good Intentions’ Top Posts for 2011
Posted on December 22, 2011 at 11:16 am
As the year draws to an end, I thought it might be interesting to look at which posts were the most popular in 2011. The results surprised me, perhaps they’ll surprise you as well. Compilation posts (where I collect links to other posts and articles on a similar topic) were the overall winners.
1. TOMS Shoes: Good Marketing – Bad Aid
Hands down the big winner. This post is so popular that it’s often the most hit post each day. If I had to guess I’d also say it’s the most linked-to post as well – which would explain why it continues to get so many hits over a year after it was originally written (October 25, 2010).
2. Voluntourism: What could go wrong when trying to do right?
This guest post, written by Daniela Papi, was featured in the Cracked.com article 6 Socially Conscious Actions That Only Look Like They Help. Aside from facebook, the Cracked.com article was the biggest referrer of readers to my blog in 2011.
3. A Day Without Dignity
This was a counter-campaign to TOMS Day Without Shoes where people from around the world were invited to write blog posts and share pictures discussing shoes and/or dignity. This post is still often linked to by other blogs and college newspaper articles.
4. The DOs and DON’Ts of Disaster Donations
This post is extremely popular after each major disaster. With so many disasters in 2011, this post received repeated hits.
5. Articles Related to the Earthquake and Tsunami in Japan
A round up of articles and newspaper stores following the devastating earthquake and tsunami. In general, posts where I collect articles on a single topic are popular and often hit while the topic is hot.
6. Why waiting to give to Japan is a good idea
The controversial idea of actually waiting to give after a disaster – especially one as visible as the one in Japan – led to lots of hits and a flurry of media interviews.
7. Collecting “Three Cups of Tea” posts
Another popular compilation post tracking the response to the scandal surrounding Greg Mortenson and his nonprofit CAI.
8. Whites in Shining Armor
This is another perennial favorite. Having coined the term, this post is often linked to by posts and articles using the phrase “Whites in Shining Armor.”
9. Tracking the World Vision / NFL Shirt Donation Controversy
Another popular compilation post. This one followed the controversy surrounding World Vision and the NFL sending 100,000 thousand football shirts from the losing Superbowl team overseas every year
10. Why are there so many natural disasters lately?
The popularity of this post could easily be used as an indicator of a recent disaster. Hits to it spike immediately after each major disaster.
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This is an interesting round-up ~ a good snapshot of what really engages our beliefs and feelings.
One correction, though: There was no scandal around Greg Mortenson. It was an ALLEGED scandal, which in turn ignited lots of useful commentary on all facets of the questions involving charities / donations / international development. Meanwhile Central Asia Institute went on about its work, including completion of a “master list” of all of their projects, annual reports, and creation of their first blog (with some especially interesting guest postings).
Now that GM has been released by his doctors from rehab following the open-heart surgery, he’s been in Tajikastan forging new relations. Hope he’s made it home for Christmas!!
To insist, as Ms. Whitmore does, that Mortenson is not embroiled in a scandal is to exist in a profound state of denial. Immediately after the scandal broke, Mortenson went underground and refused to speak to journalists or answer questions from donors. It has now been more than 8 months since “60 Minutes” first exposed Mortenson’s lies and financial improprieties, and he still refuses to explain himself to journalists or the media, choosing instead to communicate intermittently through spokespersons. Because many of these communiqués have been evasive or untrue, I’ve endeavored to debunk them in a series of updates to “Three Cups of Deceit.” My “Greg Mortenson Truth Checks” can be read (in reverse chronological order) at:
http://byliner.com/jon-krakauer/stories/excerpt-three-cups-of-deceit#update-12
It is so amazing what people will say/do to protect their own egos and try to justify their own decision making. Jon, THANK YOU for continuing to try to connect people with the facts rather then their own emotions. Imagine if you read the book on the history for Ford Motors and you just LOVED the company. You saw the founder of Ford speak about how much he loved cars and then world, and you thought it sounded like the greatest company in the world. Then, your neighbor told you that their Ford broke and was a really bad car and you went around saying “NO! It didn’t! Ford cars don’t break!” This is what the readers of Greg’s book who are defending him are doing. And THIS is going to cause huge problems in the world. A post I wrote about this here: http://lessonsilearned.org/2011/04/greg-mortenson-proving-there-are-no-%E2%80%9Cheroes%E2%80%9D-they%E2%80%99re-all-just-like-you/
Saundra – I’m also glad to see that our voluntourism piece is still getting hits. It’s often another case of cognitive dissonance where people fight to defend an action they took or thought of taking rather than considering the facts around any given situation. Egos… makes us human, but destroys the world.
[...] Good Intentions’ Top Posts for 2011 [...]
[...] In case you’re trying to remember posts on this blog, here is a list of my most popular posts from last year. [...]