2/3 of a Donation Drive is Provoking Empathy. Will Ferrell Can't Do It; This Might

For MTV and the Burma Arts Board, Shilo and Ogilvy & Mather/Amsterdam created the "Burma Viral," which will air on MTV's Times Square Jumbotron and elsewhere around the world.

The film depicts war planes lifting off all over the world and meeting over Burma. I watched with a pinch of irritation as their hatches open, expecting bombs and the requisite sight of human suffering, but -- unexpectedly -- the planes rain a canopy of flowers over the cityscape.

As the blossoms drift quietly to the ground, the following words appear: "To the peace loving people of Burma, we support you in this time of crisis. From your friends around the world." Appended to the message is an invitation to donate at MTVBurmaAction.com -- whose website, unfortunately, lacks the elegance of the video.

In any case, the "Burma Viral" does a nice job of emitting the fragility of the Burmese situation, and of peace in general, without imploring for pity. It's more moving -- and infinitely more dignified -- than using anxious celebrities to plug for cash.

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