Angelina Jolie Criticized as a 'Celebrity Tourist'

Angelina Jolie can use her fame and striking good looks to open many doors.  The self-proclaimed rebel and 'wild child of Hollywood' has used that fame for what many consider some pretty good works in the past few years.  She has adopted two children from third world countries and now reportedly is set to snatch a third from Vietnam.  Newsweek Magazine notes that she has visited the victims of violence in Africa, Pakistan and Cambodia - first as an observer in the background, then using her fame to draw attention to the plight of the helpless.

Angelina Jolie Criticized as a 'Celebrity Tourist'

She recently wrote an Op-Ed in the Washington Post on the increasingly disastrous situation in Darfur, but that was roundly criticized by those from both the left and the right of the political spectrum.  She has also been dubbed in her personal life as a home-wrecker as many Hollywood observers blame her for splitting up Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston.  She now lives with Brad Pitt in New Orleans, and their three kids.

So can Angie win for losing?  In an interview with Newsweek's Christopher Dickey it at times appears that she can't.

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One exchange in the online portion of the interview is here and Dickey asks Jolie: Do you worry about people who say this is celebrity tourism?

She responds:  I don't know if anybody saying that has spent the last six years of their life going to over 30 camps and really spending time with these people.  I can't care. At the end of the day, I'm sure a lot of criticism could keep a lot of people from doing this kind of work…

If someone had a direct criticism of my opinion on the issue, if someone had a direct criticism of the image shown because they think it hurts somebody then I will take that into consideration. But there are a lot of people that simply have an immediate gut reaction and they just don't want to combine artists with foreign policy. And hey, I understand. I get it. I know where you're coming from. And to each his own. … You know, I was more shy when I first went into a camp that other field officers would not want me there.

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Angelina will be attacked by critics no matter what she tries to accomplish.  A lot of the criticism is indeed warranted and she failed to help her cause with this last adoption where it certainly appears as if she is using her celebrity to get preferential treatment.  Time Magazine has their story up now titled 'A Fast-Track for Angelina's Adoption' that points out the process and how Jolie's adoption has been sped up.

It certainly seems as if Jolie wants to do good.  But when you are looked upon as a so called 'Celebrity Tourist' that uses fame and looks to garner favor from third world countries, the bar will be raised fairly high.

No amount of fluff pieces will aid that.