Yuna Kim builds a school in South Sudan

[wallylutz]

The title says Yuna Kim builds a school in South Sudan. I thought the OP meant she is or was in South Sudan helping a team building a school with her own hands and perhaps meeting locals and talked to the children. It turns out, the title was misleading. She donated money - $59K US to be exact and as a result one of the schools to be built shall be named in her honor, like a gazillion other celebrities do. The title of the topic would have been more accurate to state: "Yuna's charity results in a South Sudan school to be named in her honor" because this is what it really is. The OP's title is inaccurate to say the least and quite misleading although I think it was more excitement for a good deed, nothing more.

While that's very nice and commendable, donating money is easy when you have several millions banked somewhere. One way or the other, the action is still very commendable and I applaud Yuna for doing her part. What would impress me even more if this was done without the need to turn it into yet another PR opportunity. When late Princess Diana visited orphanage in the middle of the night, she surely didn't call on journalists : "Hey, come see me, I am doing all these good deeds."

 

[Krislite]

The title says Yuna Kim builds a school in South Sudan. I thought the OP meant she is or was in South Sudan helping a team building a school with her own hands and perhaps meeting locals and talked to the children. It turns out, the title was misleading. She donated money, like a gazillion other celebrities do. While that's very nice and commendable, let's not elevate this to the status of deity. Donating money is easy when you have several millions banked somewhere. One way or the other, the action is still very commendable and I applaud Yuna for doing her part. What would impress me even more if this was done without the need to turn it into yet another PR opportunity. When late Princess Diana visited orphanage in the middle of the night, she surely didn't call on journalists : "Hey, come see me, I am doing all these good deeds."

FYI: the announcement came from a newsletter of the school in Sudan, not from her agency.

Did you know her agency pays for the media coverage she gets? Yup, those crazed fans? Paid actors. Those paparazzi hounding her? Paid photographers. Those countless TV shows and coverage--all paid by her agency. Even Ryan Seacrest was recruited by her agency when he stopped by at her ATS summer ice show. Nothing else could possibly explain why everything she does is reported/covered in Korean media. Unlike Princess Diana, this girl couldn't possibly be so popular with the Korean media without some media whoring. I mean what did she do or accomplish? Be married to royalty?

 

[aftertherain]

FYI: the announcement came from a newsletter of the school in Sudan, not from her agency.

Did you know her agency pays for the media coverage she gets? Yup, those crazed fans? Paid actors. Those paparazzi hounding her? Paid photographers. Those countless TV shows and coverage--all paid by her agency. Even Ryan Seacrest was recruited by her agency when he stopped by at her ATS summer ice show. Nothing else could possibly explain why everything she does is reported/covered in Korean media. Unlike Princess Diana, this girl couldn't possibly be so popular with the Korean media without some media whoring. I mean what did she do or accomplish? Be married to royalty?

Oh, come now, Krislite, you're better than this. I know you are.

I do think "PR stunts" can be good or bad. Bad would be the never-ending example of the "American Royal Family" (ew, hell no) and their rapidly expanding empire filled with an excess of the letter "K." Angelina Jolie and her more recent efforts would be an example of "good PR stunts," which at least bring some sort of attention to an important issue at hand. Of course, those PR stunts do come with criticisms like how they're not going about it the "right way," but at the very least, their intentions are good.

I think the latter somewhat relates to Yuna. With all that controversy surrounding numerous K-pop singers and industry entertainers, it's good to have a positive role model in Yuna Kim.

While I cannot speak for the character or personality of Princess Diana, I daresay she is an example of someone who used her new-found status from obscure nobility to world-recognized royalty to bring attention to causes that were dear to her heart. She is one of many examples of marrying someone in power and then coming into her own power---someone who tried to use it mostly for good intentions.

 

[Moment]

Why feed the troll?

 

[Mathman]

It would be cool if Brian Orser made a contribution. (Sorry, in view of Wally's post I couldn't help myself. )

 

[cooper]

FYI: the announcement came from a newsletter of the school in Sudan, not from her agency.

Did you know her agency pays for the media coverage she gets? Yup, those crazed fans? Paid actors. Those paparazzi hounding her? Paid photographers. Those countless TV shows and coverage--all paid by her agency. Even Ryan Seacrest was recruited by her agency when he stopped by at her ATS summer ice show. Nothing else could possibly explain why everything she does is reported/covered in Korean media. Unlike Princess Diana, this girl couldn't possibly be so popular with the Korean media without some media whoring. I mean what did she do or accomplish? Be married to royalty?

that's correct.

BTW..the troll should do some research first.. there is NO SINGLE ARTICLE or even MEDIA coverage about this..so to say if this is for PR is ridiculous.. someone posted the newsletter which came from the school itself.. w/ her donation the school will be named Kim Yuna school..and technically it's a contribution..

and lastly yuna won another world title w/out Orser.. stop being bitter..and move on!!

 

[Mathman]

Here is a brief report from last year. It's a small world. Yuna was in Africa (Togo) to garner support with the IOC for Pyeongchang's successful bid for the 2018 Winter Olympics. This sparked an interest in helping children in Africa. It just so happened that there was a Korean-African connection through a Catholic charitable order.

http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2012/06/04/2012060400561.html

 

[RABID]

When late Princess Diana visited orphanage in the middle of the night, she surely didn't call on journalists : "Hey, come see me, I am doing all these good deeds."

Are you sure about that? There are a lot of us in our late-middle-years who thought Princess Diana was not much more than a fluff ball and we weren't inclined to grant her much in maturity points and so found her activism to be suspect. The point is that perhaps we MIGHT have been wrong in our ASSUMPTIONS.

 

[Robeye]

Why feed the troll?

Troll? I don't see any trolls. I see a small martinet of a poster lugging around an agenda that is far too big for him, however.

 

[Mathman]

Here is a public service video that Yuna made this year on behalf of children displaced by the civil war in Syria, for UNICEF. Kim has been a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador since 2010. She donated her winnings at the 2013 world championship to the UNICEF fund for children with disabilities.

http://www.unicef.org/media/media_69169.html

 

[ice coverage]

Wow, who would 'a' thunk that The Edge would have mentions of Oprah, the Pope, Midori, Orlando Bloom, Laura Bush, and Princess Diana (plus others whom I cannot bear to name) all in the same thread?

The title says Yuna Kim builds a school in South Sudan. .... She donated money - $59K US to be exact ...

.... When late Princess Diana visited orphanage in the middle of the night, she surely didn't call on journalists : "Hey, come see me, I am doing all these good deeds."

I'm no economist, but I would venture to guess that the buying power in South Sudan of $59K US is much, much greater than it would be in a First World country. The amount is nothing to sneeze at.

And you must be joking about Diana. Clarence House no doubt had a whole army of publicists drawing attention to most of Diana's charitable efforts. No shame in that. I think Diana would have been the first to say (correctly so) that her visibility multiplied the positive effects of her good works. She took her status as a role model very seriously. The more spotlight she received when she visited orphanages, for example, the more people she could inspire to show compassion for those kids and for the less fortunate in general. I can believe that on a limited number of occasions, Diana might have preferred to offer her support quietly. Very admirable. But to do so too often would have been squandering her enormous beneficial influence.

The same would be true for any public figure.

 

[Nadia01]

The title says Yuna Kim builds a school in South Sudan. I thought the OP meant she is or was in South Sudan helping a team building a school with her own hands and perhaps meeting locals and talked to the children. It turns out, the title was misleading. She donated money - $59K US to be exact and as a result one of the schools to be built shall be named in her honor, like a gazillion other celebrities do. The title of the topic would have been more accurate to state: "Yuna's charity results in a South Sudan school to be named in her honor" because this is what it really is. The OP's title is inaccurate to say the least and quite misleading although I think it was more excitement for a good deed, nothing more.

While that's very nice and commendable, donating money is easy when you have several millions banked somewhere. One way or the other, the action is still very commendable and I applaud Yuna for doing her part. What would impress me even more if this was done without the need to turn it into yet another PR opportunity. When late Princess Diana visited orphanage in the middle of the night, she surely didn't call on journalists : "Hey, come see me, I am doing all these good deeds."

ITA. How dare Yuna give money to those who are less fortunate. How dare the people she helped in Sudan publicize what she's done and thank her in their newsletter? And how dare a GS member share such a disgusting piece of news involving the reigning world & Olympic champion.

So what have you done to help those less fortunate than you? Or do you spend too much of your time criticizing other people's good deeds to help others?

Here is a public service video that Yuna made this year on behalf of children displaced by the civil war in Syria, for UNICEF. Kim has been a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador since 2010. She donated her winnings at the 2013 world championship to the UNICEF fund for children with disabilities.

http://www.unicef.org/media/media_69169.html

Oh but she did it for publicity and it's not like she's going to miss the money, so it's a meaningless gesture. It's obvious that the children would've been better off w/o something as crass as Yuna's money. *sarcasm*




* sarcasm directed at certain trolly commenters, not mathman.

 

[bebevia]

I don't think wallylutz was trying as much to troll... although more sarcastic than needed, but we all have that anti-PR moment.

If I didn't know much about Yuna's history (outside personal boundary, which she keeps strictly private), I wouldn't be as respective of her. However, IIRC, she doesn't keep up with PR, and actually has multiple charity works unknown to public. I know that she even sometimes gets annoyed by the fuss, but this makes me think, opposite to wallylutz's opinion, that her agency is not doing its job (which is to promote). BTW, Princess Diana had most of her charitable works (which she conducted graciously) covered by media, and charity and Royal Family PR was her JOB - whereas Yuna isn't expected to and has done more than enough with medals. However, she specifically mentioned how "fame comes with responsibility" and makes her "a public figure" to follow - and what she does promotes; she's meant to use her fame while she still can.

Once, a random city randomly hosted a youth figure skating scholarship event and invited her on a short notice, which she declined due to her schedule, they threatened HER that they'll cancel the event - which would disappoint the skaters that were getting the scholarship. I don't remember whether she attended or not, but she was already donating, sponsoring and giving scholarships out of her pocket long before that - and heart she got even more serious on it since then because she was the only genuine promoter without abuse.

Also, up until 2010, she attended all events that would be (if not, she promoted media to be) newsworthy as a crowdpleaser, and every time, appealed whomever that hosted or attended the scene to fund figure skating rinks and give better attention to young skaters. Many promises were publicly made, none kept; they used the promise to promote themselves. That's why she's saving to build one herself. She needs MORE PR (which she lacks), sponsors, and commercial film castings for whatever she's trying to do, because her long-term goal is bigger than her bank account.

Establishing ATS didn't profit her too much more than before; most of her earnings were put into this, and besides need for trustworthy firm, she took in young Korean skaters who wouldn't be otherwise prioritized. The whole going for committee thing, agency, she's basically aiming to rebuild an infra for the country; I hear that a few younger KSU-related people (actual enthusiasts) keep contact, though can't be verified.

 

[Olympia]

Wow, who would 'a' thunk that The Edge would have mentions of Oprah, the Pope, Midori, Orlando Bloom, Laura Bush, and Princess Diana (plus others whom I cannot bear to name) all in the same thread?

I'm no economist, but I would venture to guess that the buying power in South Sudan of $59K US is much, much greater than it would be in a First World country. The amount is nothing to sneeze at.

That's a very important point, Golden. The per capita yearly income in that newly independent country, which isn't even third world--it's fourth world--is probably no more than several hundred dollars a year. The amount YuNa donated would go a long way indeed.

My theory on YuNa as compared to Diana: Is there a surplus of humanitarians in the world? Of course not. There's a shortage. Figuring out which of these two useful ladies is not as righteous as the other is irrelevant. We need everyone we can get--glamorous or ordinary, wealthy or worker bee, publicized or not. I bet there were lots of small things that Diana did without publicity, such as making unannounced hospital and hospice visits, but even if she didn't do those things, she did plenty. And she did it in a way that inspired others. Remember what a pioneer she was for publicly hugging adults and children with AIDS. This was done at a moment when sick kids like Ryan White were expected to eat on separate dishes with separate utensils in their high schools, because people were so scared of catching AIDS. Now she's gone, and YuNa is doing all sorts of good works in her country and internationally. Great! The more the merrier. All are welcome.