After the devastating fires in Australia broke out, there seemed to be an intensified demand by fans for celebrities to donate to disaster relief programs. However, while many celebrities did, in fact, donate to the fires, they chose to keep this information private. With this secrecy, numerous cyber-attacks by unaware critics resulted. 

Celebrities like Chris Hemsworth donated $1 million to efforts to put out the fires and were sure to publicize it through platforms such as Instagram. However, other celebrities did not broadcast their donations. 

Ellen Degeneres donated to multiple organizations but did not disclose how much she sent. The controversial social media star, Kim Kardashian, was blasted on social media for supposedly not donating to the fires. However, Kardashian, overwhelmed with negativity, soon responded on Twitter with:  

“Nothing gets me more heated than to see people think they know what we donated to and to think we have to publicize everything.” 

This tweet was met with mixed responses, as some believed that she should have publicized this information, considering how much of an impact she has on her audience, while others agreed with her that good deeds should go unmentioned, rather than used for popularity. 

The questions at hand are whether or not it should be expected for celebrities to donate, and whether or not this information should be made public or kept private. Personally, I believe that it is reasonable to expect celebrities with an influx of wealth to donate to causes and charities, or at least raise awareness, so that they can give back to their community and inspire their audience. However, I believe that the argument on publicizing donations is one that can go both ways. On one hand, I agree that celebrities announcing their donations can influence fans to do the same. However, I do not think it is necessary to state how much was given, as this does not benefit the cause. This goes along with the argument that some good deeds should be kept personal, and should be done for the greater good rather than for publicity reasons.