MTV sells musicians and Africa short

I don’t believe Robert Hilburn went far enough in his condemnation of MTV / VH1’s coverage of the Live 8 concerts [“Live 8’s Safety Net,” July 4]. The event coordinators flashed this quote across the top of the various stages: “We don’t want your money.” Yet MTV, in front of an entire nation, repeatedly showed commercials for laundry detergent and shaving cream, cars and computer services.

This is nothing short of scalping, just plain looting for profit while kicking mud in the face of the very Africans who should have received whatever monetary gains the concert did raise.

Jeff McLaren

Laguna Niguel

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I had to be away for most of Saturday, so I TiVo-ed the Live 8 concerts. On Sunday afternoon, I plopped down in front of the TV and watched the entire eight-hour show. Only it didn’t take eight hours. Fast forwarding through the endless commercials and the endless MTV jabber, it took about 2 1/2 hours to watch the actual music in the show.

David DeKok

Harrisburg, Pa.

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As someone who has been a fan since the mid-’70s, I was excited to see Pink Floyd reunited. I’m not ashamed to say that I actually had tears in my eyes watching them perform. And then the unthinkable happened. Halfway through “Comfortably Numb” and right before David Gilmour’s guitar solo, they cut away from this historic event for some mindless chatter from a couple of twentysomething twits who weren’t even born when Roger Waters left the band! Are you kidding me? Who produced this debacle, Elmer Fudd?

Michael Sbaraglia

Santa Barbara

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Even if the purpose for the Live 8 concerts is realized, which is for the G-8 countries to forgive Africa’s debt and send more aid, it is only a Band-Aid because, unless most of the countries in Africa change their ways, they will find themselves back in debt within a few years.

Holding hands and singing along with a bunch of rich rock stars does nothing to address the real reasons for Africa’s problems.

Mark Muckenthaler

Norco

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I was very disappointed to find so many articles criticizing the efforts made by the singers who presented the Live 8 concerts. Is it a celebrity cause du jour? Does the audience understand what the purpose is? Will it really impact the G-8 summit?

Well, I know that for the first time in many, many years, Africa got the media attention it needed. Last weekend’s concert informed a million-plus people that there is a problem. People are dying, AIDS is prevalent, children are being orphaned -- and it is all happening by the thousands every day.

I am an Ethiopian who has been living in the L.A. area for 14 years now, and I would like to say thank you for recognizing and taking action to all the individuals involved.

Lily Habte

Los Angeles