“Poverty, Inc.” is a documentary shot in 20 different countries, exploring the rise of charity as a multibillion dollar industry and how our American dollars have an impact, for better or worse, on those in poverty. Mark Weber, co-producer of “Poverty, Inc,” joined the Federalist Radio Hour to discuss NGOs, social entrepreneurship, and the power of documentary-making.
Weber suggested the term charity has been cheapened by the non-profit world. “I don’t think removing compassion or thinking about these things in pure economics is the answer,” Weber said. “For me, compassion means seeing the person on the end of every interaction and regarding that person with the dignity they have innately as a person.”
He shared stories from some of the interviews the film features, from foreign government officials to entrepreneurs in underdeveloped countries. “What we are hearing through our interviews, and from books that are coming out of Africa especially, is that we are undermining governance,” he said.
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