The breakdown of the Kony 2012 filmmaker

Jason Russell became a victim of his own success, said Carole Cadwalladr in The Guardian (U.K.) One year ago, the filmmaker’s online campaign to raise awareness of Central African warlord Joseph Kony turned him into an instant celebrity. His Kony 2012 film became the most viral video of all time, and was viewed online 100 million times in just six days. But Russell, 34, wasn’t expecting the backlash that swiftly followed. “On the one hand, there was Bono saying, ‘Jason Russell deserves an Oscar,’” he says. “And on the other, there were people saying, ‘These people think they’re white saviors trying to save Africa.’” When online critics stepped up the attacks and accused his charity of misusing funds, Russell began to crack under the pressure. While watching the Dr. Seuss movie The Lorax, he thought the main character was talking to him. “The character is trying to protect these trees, and I thought it was me, and the trees were Rwandans.” Russell soon suffered an embarrassingly public manic episode, running naked through Los Angeles, cursing wildly and assaulting vehicles. Now on medication, Russell says he is still conflicted about what he achieved. “We set out to make Joseph Kony known. And now he is. But the breakdown put such a blanket of fear and distrust and shame over everything. That’s something I deal with every day.”

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