America: A Tribute to Heroes was a benefit concert created by the heads of the four major American broadcast networks; Fox, ABC, NBC and CBS. Joel Gallen was selected by them to produce and run the show. Actor George Clooney organized celebrities to perform and to staff the telephone bank.
It was broadcast live by the four major American television networks and all of the cable networks in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon in 2001. Done in the style of a telethon, it featured a number of national and international entertainers performing to raise money for the victims and their families, particularly the New York City firefighters and New York City police officers. It aired September 21, 2001, uninterrupted and commercial-free, for which it won a Peabody Award.[1] It was released on December 4, 2001, on compact disc and DVD.
On a dark stage illuminated by hundreds of candles, twenty-one artists performed songs of mourning and hope, while various actors and other celebrities delivered short spoken messages. The musical performances took place at three studios in Los Angeles (CBS Television City), New York, and London, while the celebrity messages took place in Los Angeles.[citation needed] Some of the musicians, including Neil Young and Eddie Vedder, were heard working the phone banks taking pledges. Over $200 million was raised and given to the United Way's September 11 Telethon Fund.
In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine selected this concert, along with the Concert for New York City, as one of the 50 moments that changed rock and roll. The show was also simulcast in Canada.
Performers
Bruce Springsteen: "My City of Ruins", a song he had performed at only a few New Jersey shows. Written before the September 11 attacks, it is actually about his home town Asbury Park, New Jersey; with a few phrases slightly modified, and introduced as "a prayer for our fallen brothers and sisters." It appeared on his The Rising album the following year.
Faith Hill: "There Will Come a Day", from her 1999 album Breathe. For this performance, Hill was joined by a gospel choir and special guest Paul Shaffer on keyboards.
America: A Tribute to Heroes was simulcast on the Internet at www.tributetoheroes.org and at America Online, as well as on more than 8,000 radio outlets around the country, including Westwood One, Clear Channel Communications and ABC Radio affiliates in major markets.
Internationally, America: A Tribute to Heroes was distributed to broadcasters in more than 210 countries around the world including BBC One in the United Kingdom. Further, the American Forces Network carried the program live on radio and television to American soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines in over 175 countries around the world.
