The choice between living in a world where children don't die of HIV/AIDS, or a world where Celebrities like Kim Kardashian doesn't tweet possibly wasn't supposed to be so hard. But the reality TV starlet is among a number of celebrities headed by the singer Alicia Keys who remain offline after quitting social media sites until fans donate $US1 million to the AIDS charity Keep A Child Alive. ''That means no more Twitter or Facebook updates from any of them,'' the website warned when the ''digital death'' campaign launched on World AIDS Day last Wednesday.
''No more knowing where they are, what they had for dinner, or what interesting things are happening in their lives. From here on out, they're dead. Kaput. Finished.'' But life without hearing from Kardashian, Ryan Seacrest and Lady Gaga seems to be more bearable than organisers realised. Almost a week into the plan, only $US287,000 had been raised as of yesterday. Nothing to be sneezed at, sure. But that was achieved after the site halved the minimum mandatory donation amount to $5 on Friday. Lady Gaga, who has reminded Twitter fans five times (in the third person) that she is offline, further drove the message home by visiting a Chanel store in Madrid apparently dressed as a mourner. But Keep A Child Alive might have its eye on the greater good all along: its website quietly details several ways for people to donate to the charity - some of which seem to bypass supporting the charity tweeters.
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