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When celebrities embrace environmental concerns, cranky naysayers pop up like toadstools after a rainstorm. But the mansions and private jets those critics seize upon, while easy targets, might not be the real problem. It might just be that green-leaning celebrities and their handlers need to open themselves up to harder questions from their media allies first, to help forestall that crankfest.

At a recent press conference for The 11th Hour, Leonardo DiCaprio's eco-documentary, the ballroom of the Regent Beverly Wilshire wasn't packed with journalists eager to take a swipe at the star and his producers, but rather with a random assortment of starstruck bloggers, earnest greenies, and a couple of bored-looking representatives of the mainstream media.

According to a reporter I met in the elevator, the Warner Entertainment office had set up a tiered system where media outlets that could provide some free ad time or space for the film got face time with DiCaprio, those with smaller budgets or sterner editors got to participate in roundtable discussions with him in a hotel suite, and the rest of the herd could take turns asking questions of four key players at the press conference: producer-directors Leila Conners Petersen and Nadia Conners; Bioneers founder and film subject Kenny Ausubel; and, yes, DiCaprio.

Grist's editors had received confirmation for the roundtables, but my name wasn't on the list. I'd done a fair amount of homework, and planned to ask about engaging working people and families -- blue collar, middle management, small business owners -- in the environmental movement. Saving the earth can seem to be kind of an upper-middle-class concern, but DiCaprio's known to be a down-to-earth guy among film crews. I thought he might have some insights.

After sampling the nicely laid out buffet in the check-in suite and seeing the rows of goodie bags on display, most of the press traipsed down to the ballroom to wait for the press conference. I took my place among them. The chairs were in rows, and the mood was of suppressed excitement. After a 10-minute wait -- right on time for a big star -- DiCaprio and the others filed in.

DiCaprio, wearing a black polo shirt and a film-noir haircut, is affable and low-key, with a charisma that positively beams. Producer-sisters Conners Petersen and Conners are attractive, dressed like they live in Santa Monica and work in the media. Everyone is very friendly.

A lively young woman is shouting in Japanese into her cell phone, the word "Leo" heard plainly. This group is thrilled to be there -- they look at DiCaprio with the expectant air of dogs that would like to be petted.

While the press release we'd been given answers most of the standard questions -- complete with a pre-done Q & A with the sisters that I've since seen liberally excerpted around the internet -- the reporters want to ask the same questions of the movie star.

Q: So, how did you get involved with the movement, Leo?

A: I became an actor at a very young age, but I also had a deep respect for nature. I think I was a little biologist when I was younger. I watched documentaries on the loss of species and habitats for animals around the world, and it affected me in a very hard-core, emotional way when I was younger.

DiCaprio answers thoughtfully, but the reporter can't ask him a follow-up question -- everyone's allotted only one. Which is too bad, because the image of little Leo sprawled on a sofa in Southern California looking at images of the natural world deserves further exploration.

But it's on to the next in the row. No shouting press here -- this is as orderly as a third-grade classroom at a non-progressive school.

Judy Sloane from Visimag.com asks about how we can all live green.

DiCaprio gives a solid but predictable answer: drive a hybrid, don't throw away plastic bottles, install solar panels, do what we can, and so on. Conners and Conners Petersen -- whose sororal beauty seems to beguile many, including Ecorazzi -- both understand that not everyone can do everything, but we can all learn where our food comes from, if our furniture is made from endangered rainforests, if our clothes are made in sweatshops. And by learning, consumers can make effective, organic, sustainable, and humane choices.

Ausubel charmingly admits that he drives a non-hybrid four wheel drive because he lives in the mountains of New Mexico. He's got an old hippie vibe; he's the only one on the panel who discusses social class as a factor in environmental issues, and he tends to go off into rants about the corporate power structure. (No one asks about how Time Warner, parent company of domestic distributor Warner Independent Pictures, figures into that structure.) Ausubel also introduces the line from Walt Kelly's comic strip Pogo -- "We have met the enemy and he is us" -- but the crowd is too young, and they look at him quizzically.

And so it goes, row by row. Some of the journalists are so inexperienced that they ask a question that's already been asked, just because it's their turn. It's obvious that no one has actually seen the whole film.

Suddenly, with a row left to go, the Warner publicist announces that there's time for only one more question. Disappointed rumblings from the back row, but no one protests. And then it's Grist's turn.

All the lite 'n' easy questions have been asked and answered. Conners Petersen was pretty passionate about consumers affecting corporate change. I've got only one shot, so I ditch my question about spreading the word to the folks on the block and go for a quality-of-life topic. I introduce the showbiz equivalent of the "conscious consumption" issue that peppers their press materials.

"Is this a union film?"

The filmmakers seem flummoxed by my question. "It's a documentary," they offer. "It's an independent film." "It's so low budget."

None of which prevents a film from having a union crew, I point out. And having a union crew would seem to fit this film's progressive agenda.

At this point, the rest of the press seems sort of embarrassed by the exchange -- it's so rude!

Attempting to explain my question, I remind the filmmakers that they just finished talking about how people should be aware of their choices. That they are advising consumers to avoid rainforest wood, sweatshop clothing, and chemical additives. To me, that also means watching films that have been produced in an ethical way.

DiCaprio stresses that any profits he gets from the film will go into nonprofit organizations -- which is nice, but Hollywood bookkeeping is notorious for ensuring that even very popular films don't turn a profit.

The producers then explain that it was just them and the editor and Leo in his mother's garage, and everyone else was a volunteer. They latch on to this: Volunteers! Good! People really cared! Did we mention it was in Leo's mother's garage? The press sheet does include a disclaimer that its long list of credits is not contractual.

As the ballroom empties, one of the Warner media handlers tells me that this was the filmmakers' first press conference, and that the question just threw them for a loop. Outside, another Warner rep comes up to point out that according to his information, 90 percent of theatrical release documentaries do not have union crews. By then, I'm more interested in the fact that the crew not only weren't union, they apparently weren't paid at all. DiCaprio once bought an island to develop as an eco-resort -- did he and his team really need unpaid labor to make what the press is fondly calling his "homemade" movie?

That same press flack also mentions that they've done 80 interviews and no one has asked this question yet, thus undercutting his colleague's positioning of the sisters' inexperience with the press -- and, at the same time, making the point that no one asks any questions that aren't easy to answer.

Sean Hannity can ask DiCaprio all the noisy questions he wants about private jets, and whether DiCaprio recycles. Gotcha! journalism is the mirror image of the softballs tossed by environmental media and celebrity-obsessed weeklies -- neither is designed to get an informative answer, and both are designed to make the questioner look good.

So what, you may be thinking. It's a good cause, and DiCaprio seems like a good guy. If people wanted to volunteer to help him out, what's the harm? Besides, those Hollywood types can afford to skip a paycheck or two.

That may be true. But as I see it, it's impossible to discuss -- and attack -- climate change without addressing issues of social class and economy. Encouraging conscious consumerism without addressing the underlying class and labor issues is irresponsible -- no matter how green the product, how progressive the process. And it is, if you ask me, irresponsible to put out an "environmental" film that doesn't quite follow the rules.

Rules like this:

In a Los Angeles Times piece the weekend after the press conference, Rose Apodaca talked up the volunteer aspect of the film. The warm and fuzzy "it takes a village" theme of her article indicates that the Warner PR team has decided on a way to mention that The 11th Hour was made in part by unpaid workers -- and make it sound like fun at the same time.

And maybe Hollywood really is full of eager volunteers who wanted to work for this good cause. I contacted Ross Day, the location manager and a Teamster member, who told me that his union allows members to work without pay on public service announcements, and that he considered this to be within the same realm. He said "it was all for a good purpose" and he felt that the message was important, so he was glad to volunteer. DiCaprio, he added, is a good guy.

The 11th Hour has an important message to deliver, and DiCaprio is obviously sincere about his work on this project. That's admirable. And many people in the film business are well aware of how ungreen the industry is, so donating their time might seem to be a way to compensate. But would The 11th Hour remain unmade if not for free labor? Was it truly the only choice? Perhaps DiCaprio's homemade movie-making team left some of its conscious consumerism on the cutting-room floor.

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It's official: Nine months after the rumors began, Leonardo DiCaprio has confirmed that he and a partner will give birth to ... a reality series on green building. DiCaprio will executive produce the 13-part Eco-Town on the Discovery Channel's Planet Green arm, launching in 2008. The original notion was to upgrade Anywhere, USA, for a show called E-topia, but the new series will focus on rebuilding a Kansas town that was hit by a tornado in May. The tornado caused 10 deaths, displaced almost all of the town's roughly 1,500 residents, and leveled homes, a hospital, and other buildings. And we're not saying Leo and his peeps are crass, cold-hearted vultures, but how excited do you think they were when Mother Nature wiped out a town called -- wait for it -- Greensburg? "This is not about a TV show and about a cable channel that reaches 50 million homes," says Discovery Communications CEO David Zaslav. "We're the number one non-fiction media company in the world, but we also want to make a difference."

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Leonardo DiCaprio
Once "king of the world," this star often flies commercially and drives himself around in a hybrid Toyota Prius. In 1998, he started the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation to promote environmental causes. More recently, he's been working on 11th Hour, an environmental documentary featuring interviews with global green leaders.

Cameron Diaz
This bombshell ain't trippin' (though that was the name of her eco-themed MTV show). The avid surfer drives a hybrid car, got trained to give Al Gore's climate presentation, and helped make the big announcement about Live Earth.

Robert Redford
The Sundance Kid has campaigned for Utah wilderness, promoted solar energy, convinced mayors to tackle climate change, and served 30 years on the board of the Natural Resources Defense Council. In April, he launched a weekly three-hour slot of eco-programming on his Sundance TV channel.

Cate Blanchett
Take notes on this scandal: Recently part of an ad campaign promoting Sydney's Earth Hour blackout, Cate Blanchett and her playwright hubby have converted their own home to solar power. As co-artistic directors of the Sydney Theatre Company, the duo also plans to green that venture and hopes to power an entire theater season off-grid.

George Clooney
This leading man not only earned an Oscar last year but also a prime spot on the cover of Vanity Fair's first green issue. In association with his award-winning role in Syriana, Clooney launched Oil Change, a campaign to say good night and good luck to America's dependence on oil. And to drive the point home, he's frequently seen out and about with his eco-friendly Tango electric car.

Ed Begley Jr.
We're Ed over heels for this electric-car-driving, solar-powered-home-owning star. He's got his own brand of eco-cleaners (Begley's Best), a reality show that puts a domestic spin on green issues (Living with Ed), and a morning routine that involves powering his toaster with a stationary bike.

Edward Norton
The eco-commitment of this Hollywood heavyweight is no illusion. Norton used his star power to help launch BP's Solar Neighbors Program, which gets solar panels onto low-income homes in L.A., and he hosted an award-winning, four-part National Geographic TV special about the unnerving effects of global environmental problems.

Daryl Hannah
Arrested last year for staging a 23-day tree-sit in a bid to save L.A.'s South Central Farm, an urban community garden, this steel magnolia is a longtime environmentalist who drives a biodiesel car and runs her green home on solar power. Hannah has also recently made a splash online with the eco-video blog dh love life.

Amitabh Bachchan
Concerned about his native India's vulnerability to climate change, this top Bollywood star helped launch a partnership between Global Cool and the International Indian Film Academy to use the power of cinema to build awareness of the issue.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus
She may be starring in The New Adventures of Old Christine, but being a devout environmentalist is nothing new for Louis-Dreyfus. Her solar-powered home is a showcase of green design and energy efficiency, and she's long been active with organizations like Heal the Bay, the Natural Resources Defense Council, and the Trust for Public Land.

Pierce Brosnan
The world is enough for this 007, who focuses his activism on the planet -- marine mammals and wetland protection in particular. Brosnan -- who was named "Best-Dressed Environmentalist" in 2004 and serves on the board of the Environmental Media Association -- has long fought for dolphin-safe tuna rules and protested the U.S. Navy's widespread use of sonar, which can harm whales and other cetaceans.

Rosario Dawson
Though she's soon to reprise her Sin City role, Dawson's environmental involvement leans more toward the virtuous. In 2005, she brought her star power to a U.N. summit on preserving the environment and ending poverty, and, more recently, she's dialed up her work with Global Cool's mobile texting campaign, which steers money to clean energy and energy-reduction projects.

Will Ferrell
He got guffaws during his blaze of glory on TBS's "Earth to America!" eco-comedy special, but this funnyman's commitment to the environment is no laughing matter. He's an active supporter of the Natural Resources Defense Council, and, though it may sound stranger than fiction, he'll soon be driving his electric car into the driveway of an eco-friendly home.

Tom Hanks
An avid supporter and volunteer for The Nature Conservancy, this Forrest had the gumption to order the very first eBox electric car, delivered earlier this year. And Hanks often goes the extra green mile to make mention of his environmental leanings when he makes major TV appearances.

Brad Pitt
Twice named "Sexiest Man Alive" by People magazine, Pitt isn't just a pretty face. A major architecture buff, he's been hot on the trail of the emerging green-building movement, helping with efforts to rebuild New Orleans in an eco-friendly way, narrating a sustainable design TV series, and supporting Ed Norton's Solar Neighbors Program.

Photo: Kevin Mazur / WireImage

Julia Roberts
This pretty woman was featured on the cover of Vanity Fair's green issue last year -- and for good reason: She's a spokesperson for Earth BioFuels and frequently talks up green issues on Oprah and other TV shows. Plus, the Erin Brockovich star will soon be playing another green activist, wildlife conservationist Joan Root, who was shot and killed in 2006.

Photo: PBS

Matt Damon
The talented Mr. Damon has been a good shepherd for the earth, narrating the documentary Running the Sahara and participating in the related awareness campaign about the water crisis in Africa. Damon also narrated the Journey to Planet Earth series on PBS.

Photo: Leon Bennett / WireImage

Alicia Silverstone
A longtime vegetarian -- and PETA's "Sexiest Female Vegetarian" in 2004 -- this blonde bombshell certainly isn't clueless about real environmental commitment. Silverstone is quick to talk the green talk in interviews, but she also walks the walk in her own green home, complete with solar panels and a table made from the flooring of an old bowling alley.

Photo: Vera Anderson / WireImage

Matt Dillon
There's something about Matt Dillon: He recently teamed up with Global Green USA and Yahoo! to announce a "Greenest City in America" challenge as part of the web engine's new "Be a Better Planet" program, which urges Americans to take action against climate change.

Photo: John Sciulli / WireImage.com

Charlize Theron
This South African beauty is no monster when it comes to green issues. She's traveled in eco-style to the Oscars and teamed up with a number of other celebs to fight the installation of LNG terminals off the coast of Malibu, Calif.

Sarah van Schagen contributed to this list.

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Leonardo DiCaprio brings climate-change film to Cannes

A year ago, Al Gore spread the climate-change message at the Cannes Film Festival. Now it's Leonardo DiCaprio's turn. The former boy wonder produced, co-wrote, and narrated The 11th Hour, a documentary that explores how industrial society screwed itself and how it can fix the problem. Relying on interviews with the likes of Stephen Hawking and David Suzuki, the 90-minute film "[gives] the scientists and experts a format where they can speak freely and openly without having to argue the points anymore," says Leo. Like Gore, his eco-mentor, DiCaprio is battling accusations of hypocrisy from the press: You fly in planes! You use energy! You're a big fatty! Although he took a bit o' the bait, pointing out that he flew commercially to Cannes instead of on a private jet, DiCaprio deflected most of the personal attacks, calling on the mega-polluting U.S. to "set an example" for the world and reminding the press that the world is ending. "Look at the message," he pleaded. "Isn't that the larger story?"

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Eco-minded actor Leonardo DiCaprio -- who tools around L.A. in a Prius and has been outspoken about issues like worldwide access to potable water -- is now bringing a tree-hugging message to film. According to spokesdude Ken "Walkin' on" Sunshine (we made that middle part up), DiCaprio has started work on 11th Hour, a full-length documentary about global warming. The multi-talented DiCaprio will produce, co-write, and narrate the film, scheduled to hit the big screen in fall 2006. "Global warming is not only the No. 1 environmental challenge we face today, but one of the most important issues facing all of humanity," said DiCaprio. Hey Leo, we'd warm your globe ...

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Despite the five-month waiting list for Toyota Priuses in the U.S., Toyota has no plans to boost production numbers for its four-door gas-electric hybrid, which gets between 45 and 52 miles per gallon of gasoline. Toyota and Honda (its two-door Insight rates between 61 and 68 mpg) are planning to build fewer than 20,000 hybrid cars for sale this year in the U.S., where 17 million vehicles were sold last year. Although hybrid cars won't be competing with SUV sales anytime soon, some celebrities and politicians have flocked to them (Leonardo DiCaprio has two!). General Motors, Ford, and Daimler Chrysler say they will begin selling hybrid SUVs in 2003. Meanwhile, the world's first sports car running on rotting vegetables -- 220 pounds of the stuff powers the car for 62 miles -- is on tour at motor shows around the world.

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Actor Leonardo DiCaprio interviewed President Clinton on the topic of global warming Friday, for an Earth Day special that will air on April 22 on ABC. Clinton discussed his policy on climate change and efforts to make the White House more eco-friendly, according to White House spokesperson Jake Siewert. "I thought it was an interesting, innovative opportunity for us to take a very important subject and, with someone like Leonardo DiCaprio, be able to direct it to a young audience," said Phyllis McGrady, executive producer of ABC News. DiCaprio is chair and emcee of the main Earth Day 2000 event to be held on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

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Celebs such as Leonardo DiCaprio, Pierce Brosnan, Ted Danson, Bette Midler, and Patrick Stewart have all taken on environmental causes, and enviros are welcoming the help, though they acknowledge that the pairing of indulgent Hollywood and the more simplicity-oriented environmental movement is sometimes an odd one. Denis Hayes, chair and CEO of Earth Day Network, which recently announced that DiCaprio would host its April 22nd event on the Mall in Washington, D.C., said, "Sure, it'd be preferable if policy issues could be discussed on a higher plane, but we live where we live." For his part, DiCaprio says he has always wanted to make a difference and is now in a position to do so. Aside from hosting Earth Day 2000, DiCaprio has pledged to buy a fuel-efficient hybrid vehicle by the end of the year.

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You may remember him from such box-office blockbusters as "Titanic" and "Romeo and Juliet." Leonardo DiCaprio's latest project is even bigger -- getting the world to do something about climate change. Today DiCaprio is announcing that he will host Earth Day 2000 events on the Mall in Washington, D.C. He joins the Earth Day Network in mounting a major worldwide campaign for clean energy, culminating on April 22, 2000. Check out Leo's webcast about his Earth Day endeavors today at 11:00 a.m. PST (2:00 p.m. EST), or chat the Young One up in his first live web question and answer session.

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