#BaleOutAurora, a hashtag campaign to convince The Dark Knight Rises star Christian Bale to visit victims of Friday’s mass shooting in Aurora, Colo. has gotten quite a bit of attention. The idea started on Facebook and spread via Twitter, where it got almost 400 mentions.
Mashable also included the hashtag in a list suggesting “5 Ways You Can Help the Aurora Theater Shooting Victims Online,” along with an Indiegogo campaign to raise money for victim Jessica Redfield’s scholarship fund.
“They need to know Heroes can be real too, not just the bad guys,” wrote Anastasia June Tardiff on the KTIV News Channel Four Facebook page, the original inspiration for #BaleOutAurora.
Throughout the week, the campaign may have racked up hundreds of mentions, but that number includes supporters as well as those disagreeing with the hashtag’s intentions. Genuine tweets stack up next to those calling #BaleOutAurora “cringeworthy” and something that might be “traumatic for the survivors.”
“I get the sentiment of #BaleOutAurora, but I don’t think having Christian Bale visit the hospital is a good idea. Seems traumatic to me,” tweeted @stevehelling.
“How is this #BaleOutAurora campaign still going? It’s a terrible idea! Traumatized children don’t need to be reminded of that night,” tweeted, @DrAvenue.
Love it or hate it, #baleoutaurora may not have even been necessary. Bale took it upon himself to visit the shooting victims in plain clothes, and hasn’t publicly acknowledged the online campaign.
KMGH Denver 7NEWS Reporter Marshall Zelinger tweeted a photo of the actor at The Medical Center of Aurora on Tuesday afternoon.
Photo via Twitter