First there was the red scare. Then came the war against drugs. Now it's environmentalism. Americans have certainly proven that they love to jump aboard socially and politically meaningful bandwagons.

For the past several years, the issues of global warming and an awareness of the environment have begun to play an important role in American society, as many prolific public figures have begun to take an active role in reducing the threat of global warming. It is difficult to go day to day without hearing about new and inventive ways to "go green."

Last Friday, former Vice President Al Gore — who is the face of the highly polarizing and mesmerizing film An Inconvenient Truth, and the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change — received the Nobel Peace Prize for raising awareness about the recent plights facing our environment.

Surely, such a triumph for Gore, who has become something of a spokesperson for global environmental issues, will help to keep environmentalism trendy and on the minds of many Americans, who always seize any opportunity to obsess about any politically or socially pertinent issues. Environmentalism is definitely not the exception to the rule.

Upon receiving the award, Gore used the opportunity to continue to address the dangers of global warming, which he called "the greatest challenge we've ever faced."

According to MSNBC, Gore in a statement said he was "deeply honored. We face a true planetary emergency. The climate crisis is not a political issue; it is a moral and spiritual challenge to all of humanity."

In juxtaposition to the numerous critics who have argued that Gore is nothing more than a figurehead for this issue, the Nobel Peace Prize committee said in a statement: "His strong commitment, reflected in political activity, lectures, films and books has strengthened the struggle against climate change. He is probably the single individual who has done most to create greater worldwide understanding of the measures that need to be adopted."

Everybody should agree that global warming is an imperative issue and that drastic changes must take place within the activities of our society in order to ensure the longevity of our planet. There have always been environmentalists who have tried to capture the nation's often flighty attention span.

However, Hollywood has recently jumped on the green bandwagon, making the entire issue that much more difficult to ignore.

Numerous public figures ranging from Bono to Leonardo DiCaprio have been critically outspoken against industries (such as oil companies) that cause great harm to our environment.

DiCaprio was even one of the early supporters of the Toyota Prius — a green-friendly hybrid-vehicle that has recently become uber-trendy and dominated the automotive market.

Even Oprah has joined the game, dedicating numerous episodes of her talk show to focusing on the importance of "going green."

Many of these public figures have discovered that they can use their fame to successfully influence pubic option on serious issues. Citing her powerful book club as evidence of her influence, when Oprah says jump, numerous malleable Americans jump. When she talks, America clearly listens with baited breath.

The presence of global warming has even begun to permeate into the realm of scripted television. According to the Washington Post, the producers of the upcoming season of 24 announced that they "will take steps to reduce and offset the carbon emissions from the show's production, with the goal of having the season finale be entirely carbon-neutral."

According to Fox network spokesman Chris Anderson, the publicity surrounding this recent decision is intended to be completely selfless, and not a ratings stunt.

"We are publicizing 24's commitment to climate change for two reasons, and two reasons only: to inspire the public to take global warming seriously and hopefully to motivate other studios to make changes to their production practices as well," he said.

Whatever the reason the producers of 24 have for reducing their carbon emissions, this recent turn of events illustrates a critical point. Hollywood can greatly influence the social and political outlooks of its consumers. Given that global warming is truly one of the most dangerous and widespread problems to ever embattle our society, it is critical that numerous public figures and the elite of Hollywood continue to raise awareness.

Hollywood is a powerful industry. It can use its influence to convince numerous people to have a single and specific focus: to prevent global warming.

Given Gore's recent success, could a bid for the presidency be far behind? Gore has made it clear that he does not intend to run for president in 2008, but because of his hard work, it is likely that environmentalism will be an issue central to the upcoming elections. It is an issue that is inexcusably inescapable.

People often do not think for themselves. They often believe and accept what they are told, simply because they need to feel accepted and that they exist within norms of society. Such is the nature of our political system, media and society. The leaders of our world, both in entertainment and politics, need to continue to seize that accepted reality and convince all people to care about the environment.

[Reach columnist Chris Heide at opinion@thedaily.washington.edu.]