Interview with Innocence Project on Chris Martin's Ambassadorship

Two weeks ago, Innocence Project made an important announcement on Twitter, stating that Chris Martin is chosen to be the newest Innocence Ambassadors.

Today, we had a pleasure to speak to the communication manager of Innocence Project, Andrew Z Giacalone, about Chris Martin's participation and his favorite part about Coldplay.

We are glad to hear that Chris loves to support the community and one of them is Innocence Project. What was the first reaction when Chris finally joined this project?

We were elated to hear that Chris and Coldplay had decided to step forward and join the innocence movement as Innocence Ambassadors. The Innocence Project already has an impressive roster of world-renowned artists devoted to advocating against wrongful conviction and for criminal justice reform here in the US. But to have the star-power of such global rock icons on our side is a great advantage, particularly when trying to communicate the importance of reforming our criminal justice system to a young, socially aware audience and ensuring that they become active in lobbying for change.

You mentioned about, "At each venue throughout the tour the Innocence Project will have people on hand to educate concertgoers about the organization’s work and the problem of wrongful convictions" in the article, which we also agree. What kind of specific message will you give us as Coldplay fans?

We will be asking all fans to join Chris and Coldplay and to #StandUp4INNOCENCE alongside us on social media, whether it be on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram. In addition, we hope to help educate people about the issues that cause wrongful conviction, from the use of unvalidated forensic sciences to the misconduct of law enforcement and government officials. We hope to build grassroots support to help us lobby lawmakers around the country to support reforms to prevent wrongful convictions. Fans can receive updates from the Innocence Project about how they can help and also join us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.

What is it like working with Chris along the way? What do you like about his personality?

Chris has been extremely gracious and helpful. We announced our collaboration in the weekend leading up to Coldplay’s Super Bowl performance so you can imagine how busy they both were. Nonetheless, Chris took the time and showed his support for the Innocence Project through a selfie that he then pushed out on social media for all too see. That’s the kind of vocal support we look for in an Innocence Ambassador.

What are your expectations that you hope from Coldplay fans when reacting about this matter?

I hope Coldplay fans will embrace our efforts to draw greater attention to the issue of wrongful conviction. At the same time, I urge your readers to visit our website www.innocenceproject.org and follow us on Twitter and Facebook so they too can learn more about how we use DNA evidence to free the wrongfully convicted.

Will you collaborate with other artists to support the project? What are your hopes for Innocence Project in the long term?

We already collaborate with numerous actors, actresses and performers. Ryan Phillippe and Tony Goldwyn are long-time supporters as are Whoopi Goldberg and Susan Sarandon. With their help, we want #StandUp4INNOCENCE to become a national and global movement. And that’s precisely how Coldplay and Coldplay fans can help us too.

Apart from this awareness, we are interested in knowing about your Coldplay knowledge. What is your favorite song by Coldplay and why?

Here at the Innocence Project, I think we can safely say that Viva la Vida is our favorite Coldplay song because, at its title suggests, it’s a celebration of life. Every day we confront cases in which innocent men and women have been imprisoned due to the imperfections of our criminal justice system. On average, our DNA exonerees have spent 14 years of their lives in prison for crimes they didn’t commit. Lewis Fogle, one of our most recent exonerees, spent 34 years in prison. If you take a moment to think about that, then you realize that our work is also a celebration of life, of innocence, and a stand for justice.

How do you describe about Chris in 3 words?

Dynamic, impactful, conscientious.

What are the future plans for the collaboration with Coldplay?

For now, we’re focusing on our plans for the upcoming US tour. Then we’ll discuss future collaborations.

As Coldplaying is the biggest Coldplay fansite in the world, do you have something to say for us?

I really encourage all Coldplay fans to follow in Chris’ and Coldplay’s shoes and join us in our effort to #StandUp4INNOCENCE. Anyone can help just by following us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, visiting our website and learning more about what they can do to stop wrongful convictions. Wrongful convictions can happen to anyone; no one is exempt or safe. So it’s imperative that we build awareness and put pressure on our politicians to adopt the legislative measures necessary for making our criminal justice system fairer and less prone to the glaring miscarriages we have seen and continue to see to this day.

Visit www.innocenceproject.org to learn more and grab the t-shirts now to support the project.