Survey: Al Gore is Top Dog Among Global Warming Champions

What's in a name? If your name is Al Gore, it means that a majority of respondents to a worldwide poll believe you have the power to battle the evil known as global warming:

Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, talk show host Oprah Winfrey and ex-U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan are best suited to champion work to fight climate change, a 47-nation opinion poll said on Monday.

The three were most picked by more than 26,000 Internet users from a list of more than 20 politicians, actors, singers and soccer players to highlight links between celebrities and the environment before Live Earth pop concerts on Saturday.

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Gore was chosen by 18 percent of people when asked to pick up to three people from the list as the most influential to "champion efforts to combat global warming".

The survey was conducted by Oxford University in conjunction with the Nielsen Company media group.

I find it interesting that celebrities, politicians and sports stars would have any kind of credibility when it comes to such scientific matters. Apparently only one-third of the repondents to this survey agree, as that's how many thought no one on the list was "suited to lead an assault on climate change." It goes to show how fame can instantly make one credible on just about any topic.

It looks like Gore has learned about self-promotion from the best -- the celebrities he has recently surrounded himself with -- as he managed to beat out such Hollywood luminaries on the list as Leonardo DiCaprio and George Clooney. Ironically, according to Oxford University's Max Boykoff, the movement has to be careful when recruiting star power to get the message across:

"...[I]nvolving Hollywood means there is a risk that some of these questions may just be confined to trivial fashion."

As Al Gore's star continues to rise, how long will it be before his celebrity persona gets in the way of the message he seeks to convey?