The problem with Madonna

There's no doubting Madonna's good intentions. Not only did she adopt a boy from Malawi, but her organization, Raising Malawi, is committing several million dollars to help orphan programs -- ranging from an orphanage to feeding center. But the trouble is that the group is giving huge amounts of money to groups that had budgets of only several thousand dollars. And for some of the groups, the new money created infighting, jealousies, and, eventually, the closing of programs.

Starting in Malawi

There's no doubt about who is the most prominent American involved with orphans in Malawi: Madonna. While journalists have focused on her adoption of a boy from an orphanage almost two hours outside Lilongwe, her most significant impact has been money donated through her Raising Malawi organization. By my count, she has committed roughly $3 million so far to various organizations.

Getting started

The idea was to examine what Americans were doing to help orphans in Africa. Dominic Chavez, a photographer, and I started in Malawi and Ethiopia. And one of the first people we met was a boy named Miracle.