It took Martin Scorsese more than 30 years of filmmaking before he could finally raise that golden, naked man who goes by the name of Oscar high above his head. Al Gore, on the other hand, decided to swing at the first pitch he saw and crush it over the right-field baggy, watching his "An Inconvenient Truth" morph from a mundane PowerPoint into a still slightly mundane but nonetheless powerful film. To many, this was not merely an award for Mr. Gore; this was for the cause that he has tirelessly championed, that the reality of climate change was breathing down our necks whether we wanted to look back or not. For others, however, this was nothing more than those liberal Hollywood elites patting themselves on the back and, in the process, defaming the legacy of the Academy Awards — because Cher obviously deserved hers.
Hollywood is one thing, but Oslo, Norway, home of the Nobel Prize ceremony, is a completely different arena. The Nobel Prize has long been regarded as the paramount form of recognition in the six fields it is awarded: medicine, chemistry, physics, literature, economics and peace. For the scientists, authors, professors and world figures who receive the award, it is a sign of international recognition for creating positive change in an often-tumultuous world. Recently, the Nobel Foundation announced that Mr. Gore, along with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, would receive the Nobel Peace Prize for efforts in their respective fields. The same man who lays claim to the Internet and the 2000 presidency is now, in the eyes of the Nobel Foundation, an equal to Mother Teresa, Elie Wiesel and Nelson Mandela. Never has an award for progress taken such an enormous step back.
Mr. Gore is an intelligent, well-spoken and passionate man who has helped bring America out of the darkness concerning the issue of global warning. But as vital as awareness is, it is a step that has already been taken by much of the world. To recognize an American for helping change public perception regarding climate change is like handing the last place finisher in a race the gold medal simply for running. Remember, had Mr. Gore become president, he would not be escorted by a motorcade of 14 bulletproof Toyota Priuses; he would be in the back seat of an SUV the size of your apartment.
In addition to the hypocrisy of awarding the Peace Prize for climate change to an American is the glaring realization that Mr. Gore has become much more of a poster boy for climate change than a front line soldier. I have never seen a Nobel Prize for Chemistry winner on the Tonight Show, but I have seen Mr. Gore, who is admittedly funnier than Jay Leno, several times. Don Cheadle did not receive any Nobel recognition for "Hotel Rwanda," and although it is a bit of an extreme example, it helps illustrate the underlying issue of recognition versus work. Although I immediately associate climate change with Mr. Gore, it is not because I think he is doing the most work, it's because I've seen him on television. The Nobel Prize should not be a popularity contest, and although Mr. Gore has put incredible effort into his work, there are many more deserving people and foundations, such as the Union of Concerned Scientists or the David Suzuki Foundation. In handing the award to Mr. Gore, the global community is stepping on a mass of scientists and concerned individuals to praise a man who is featured on a DVD.
Controversy is nothing new for the Nobel Foundation, especially when it comes to the Peace Prize. In 1994 the foundation awarded Yasser Arafat the Nobel Peace Prize for "efforts to create peace in the Middle East." Needless to say, Mr. Arafat may not have been wholly deserving of such an award. In some ways, controversy helps stir further discussion on the issue, which may be why it is recognized in the first place. But the Nobel Foundation is not Don Imus, and should rely on facts and results to make its decisions, not an interesting storyline.
I miss the old Al Gore. I miss watching him distance himself from President Bill Clinton, talk about lockboxes on national television, or host SNL with Phish. That Al Gore was boring, noncontroversial and easy to like. Essentially, he was PBS. These days, Mr. Gore has supercharged himself to the point where he is more like HBO at night. He has gone from deserving credit and receiving very little to receiving far more than he has earned. Somehow Mr. Gore has won over the world, when last time I checked, he couldn't even win Florida.
Sean Kittridge ([email protected]) .is a sophomore majoring in jJournalism
