This list picks out 12 of the best, most interesting or just plain popular charity-focused videos on YouTube. Surprisingly, a large portion of our picks are charity singles released by popular artists in support of timely causes.
The charity single phenomenon long predates the video sharing network. In 1979, a group of artists including ABBA, the Bee Gees and Earth Wind & Fire jammed in the U.N. General Assembly Hall as part of The Music for UNICEF Concert: A Gift of Song. Not only did the perfomance kick off the U.N.'s Year of the Child, a call to protect and support children's rights, but it started a movement of charity single copycats.
YouTube has created more opportunities for charity singles, but our top videos for social good do more than raise money for their selected campaigns. This list showcases videos that integrate their cause into the viewing experience in the hope of making a greater impact.
Here are the 12 YouTube videos that stand out for their commitment to humanitarian causes. They are ranked according to views, although that alone did not qualify a video for the list. Let us know in the comments what you think of the list, and whether we missed any video or cause that matters to you.
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