Mr. Burns’ Voice Speaks at HLS

When the minds behind “The Simpsons” and “The West Wing” sit down for an evening chat, politics and pop culture are fair game.

Yesterday’s discussion, “Making a Difference: When Hollywood Meets Capitol Hill,” brought together comedian, radio personality, and Simpsons writer Harry Shearer and Emmy Award-winning producer and writer of the West Wing Lawrence O’Donnell, Jr. ’76 at the Harvard Law School. Atlantic Monthly senior editor Corby Kummer moderated.

The panel, co-sponsored by the HLS Committee on Sports and Entertainment Law and arts and entertainment nonprofit Creative Coalition, was organized to create conversation about the function of celebrities in aiding national causes.

A part-time New Orleans resident, Shearer uses his weekly satirical radio show Le Show to remind the country of ongoing post-Katrina suffering and to suggest practical engineering solutions to the city’s problems.

“I found myself forced into the role of stepping forward to represent New Orleans to the rest of the world after Katrina,” said Shearer, who is the voice of both Ned Flanders and Mr. Burns on the Simpsons.

Having a foot in both entertainment and activism is a way of nourishing “different parts of your soul,” said Shearer.

O’Donnell said that celebrities such as George Clooney have credibility in their philanthropy because their careers are already established.

And Shearer also suggested that the effectiveness of celebrity civic engagement hinges on the sincerity of the individual’s commitment.

“The question you have to ask is, are you contributing to the culture of inauthenticity rampant in this country?” said Shearer.

Political issues can be successfully incorporated into entertainment media like the Simpsons, said Shearer. “But only if you don’t try to tell the audience what to think in the third act,” he added.

Shearer said a Simpsons episode planned for next season will pit Ned Flanders against creationism—a hot topic lately due to the intelligent design debates.

O’Donnell, who served as the Democratic Chief of Staff of the Senate Committee on Finance from 1993 to 1995, depicted his make-believe White House as a place to debate political issues in a manner impossible on cable news.