Page 152 - Carbon Capitalism and Communication Confronting Climate Crisis

142 P. McCURDY

ill-advised remark given in interview allowed supporters of tar sands
development to bring the full force of this argument into play. His initial
intervention however, attracted more positive publicity.
In August 2014, he toured Fort McMurray in the course of making the
National Geographic channel documentary Before the Flood. While the
visits of Campbell, Cameron and Young involved some form of press
conference, DiCaprio’s visit did not. However, some coverage was posted
to social media by tar sands campaigners and then picked up by local and
national media (McDermott 2014). While touring Alberta, DiCaprio
accepted an ‘Ice-bucket Challenge’ from British football star David
Beckham. The Challenge was part of a viral media campaign where indi-
viduals were filmed having a bucket of ice water dumped over them to raise
awareness about amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and raise funds for
research. Once completed, the individual could then ‘challenge’ three
others to complete the same task, share the video and his/her subsequent
nominations. The campaign gained particular traction through the
involvement of high profile celebrities.
DiCaprio’s Ice Bucket video was filmed on the shores of Lake
Athabasca, Alberta, in the company of about 50 members from the ACFN,
MFCN and tar sands campaigners (Isis1174 2014). While DiCaprio par-
ticipated in the ALCS campaign, he simultaneously used his video as a
political platform to amplify tar sands issues. He achieved this by incor-
porating challenges from Chief Adam of the Athabasca Chipewyan First
Nation who challenged CAPP President Dave Collyer, Chief Courtoreille
of the Mikisew Cree First Nation who then challenged Suncor Executive
Vice-President Mark Little, and Sierra Club President Michael Brune who
challenged Shell’s CEO Ben van Beurden. Meanwhile, DiCaprio chal-
lenged Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper (Isis1174 2014).
DiCaprio’s politically calculated Challenge video received national news
attention. Although Prime Minster Harper did not reply directly, DiCaprio
was able to use his celebrity status to draw attention to the tar sands amidst
the viral coverage of the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge (Canada Press 2014).
In December 2015, DiCaprio made headlines again, this time for
comments made during an interview with Variety magazine. In the
interview DiCaprio was reflecting on the weather during his time filming of
the Oscar-winning movie The Revenant just outside Calgary, Alberta.
DiCaprio remarked: