Clooney, Haggis to raise funds for Haiti

Actor George Clooney is planning to host a TVtelethon next Fridayto raise money for the people of Haiti.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, Clooney has an agreement from MTV to air a telethon on all its channels on Jan. 22.

He'll be raising money for victims of the earthquake that devastated Port-au-Prince, the Haitian capital, on Tuesday.

Clooney said he planned to recruit talent for the telethon from among his celebrity friends. Joel Gallen who handled thetelethon heldafter the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the U.S.will be the producer.

The Up in the Air staris the latest celebrity to turn his attention to the stricken nation. Musician Wyclef Jean and actor Jimmy Jean-Louis of Heroes, both of Haitian background, have issued public appeals for help.

Academy Award-winning screenwriter and director Paul Haggis is also approaching everyone he knows to get support for Haiti.

"Haiti is a country that's long been forgotten, although it's only an hour from our shores," Haggis said, explaining why he took such an interest in the nation, even before the latest crisis.

Inspired by priest

Haggis is founder of Artists for Peace and Justice, a group that has been funding hospitals, schools and orphanages in Haiti for the past year.

The Canadian-borndirectorwas inspired by the work of Rev. Rick Frechette, an American doctor, priest and community organizer working in the slums of Port-au-Prince. Artists for Peace and Justice supports Frechette's work.

Haggistold CBC News Frechette was in the U.S. visiting his mother at the time of the quake, but has since rushed back to help in the communities where he works.

The earthquake has destroyed Frechette's hospital and done damage to a trade school, pediatricclinic and rehab centre he built, but fortunately no children at the clinic were hurt, Haggis said.

"It's pretty unthinkable by our standards. It's hard for us to imagine the level of devastation."

Haggis and Artists for Peace and Justice plan a Los Angeles fundraiser to back Frechette's work.

Haggis said celebrities can have a real impact on charitable giving in a crisis.

"We all have the instinct. We want to help and we're guided by people we respect."

Charities working in Haiti say there is a need for food, water and medical supplies, as well as shelters for the millions left homeless by the quake.