Bezos Donation to Australia Doesn't Land Well

It's not often a million-dollar donation is called paltry. But such is the case when the person giving it is Jeff Bezos—and when the million is in Australian dollars, making it worth $690,000 American. The controversy started after the Amazon CEO announced the donation on Instagram, reports HuffPost. “Our hearts go out to all Australians as they cope with these devastating bushfires,” Bezos wrote. “Amazon is donating 1 million AU dollars in needed provisions and services.” And then the backlash began, with critics comparing the amount unfavorably to sums donated by Metallica, Chris Hemsworth, Pink, Kylie Jenner, and others.

As Business Insider points out, $690,000 is the amount Bezos—the world's richest human, with an estimated worth of $110 billion—makes every five minutes or so. Lots of people were picking up on that as part of the charity shaming. Maybe the most unusual suggestion came from a post at Gizmodo, which notes that an Instagram model made $1 million for the cause by giving donors nude images. Given Bezos' own controversy involving nude photos, notes Alyse Stanley, maybe Bezos could do the same? (Australia is air-dropping food to save animals.)