Photo: Mark HarrisonCNN Larry King’s replacement ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ judge Piers Morgan allegedly gave his new CNN bosses a list of stars who won’t be on his talk show. Madonna is supposedly at the top of the list because Morgan alleges that Madonna’s charity work in Malawi is a publicity stunt.

As of this moment, the comment hasn’t been picked up in what we would call the reputable press — like BBC. So we’re waiting for Morgan to clarify his remarks before we announce our decision to never watch his show on CNN.

Ego works both ways, you know, Piers. The AOC sisterhood stands firm on Madonna and her work in Africa.

For an update on Madonna’s new school for girls in Malawi, ABC News interviews German-born Columbia University architect Markus Dochantschi. Dochantschi tells Architectural Digest Oct. 2010 that Madonna was very specific about what she wanted her Raising Malawi Academy for Girls to look like.

He says, “We were asked to design a prototype boarding school replicable by others even in different countries, without repeating the typical British-style school that you see in former British colonies.

Perhaps it’s this comment that causes Piers to find Raising Malawi a fraudalent cause. And then there’s the fact that millions of men don’t believe in educating young girls in Malawi and all through Africa. Perhaps Piers Morgan agrees with the popular viewpoint about the value of females.

Dochantschi tells Architectural Digest: “Traditionally, a lot of girls drop out in eighth grade (in Malawi), shortly before they get married… Madonna hopes that the school will instill pride in their homeland, and that educated young women will understand the importance of remaining in Malawi, supporting their own communities.” via ABC News

We await a clarification from Piers Morgan on his real views on Madonna’s work educating girls in Malawi. It’s important to note that last year’s Sept 2010 Clinton Initiative, research by the Nike Foundation and NoVo Foundation confirmed programs for girls and females received 1 cent of every dollar donated in global projects.

Speaker Zainab Salbi, founder and chief executive of Women for Women International said: “Money is not the problem … it’s available. But the political decision to say ‘we need to actually invest much more in girls and women’ is not fully there yet.” via AOC

Piers Morgans views on girl-related initiatives like Raising Malawi — if true — would not be a minority view, but the prevailing one in the majority of developing countries and Western ones as well, and especially among Conservatives and religious fundamentalists.

The Girl Effect

Anne of Carversville exists to rally a more equitable distribution of philanthropy funds for girls and women worldwide. And we will lend an extra effort to ‘Raising Malawi”, if Piers Morgan attempts to spread a message that educating girls is not a critical issue for our world by deriding Madonna’s work in Malawi and elsewhere.

The Rand Corporation has very positively praised the results of Madonna’s SFK education program worldwide. If we can be blunt, the controversy around Madonna and her Kabbalah-related beliefs riles Conservatives worldwide.

In every country fundamentalist religious figures — Jewish, Muslim and Christian — attack programs to educate girls. From our point of view, Madonna’s critics are no different, NEVER actually producing a defamatory piece of research to invalidate her efforts.

It’s all talk — which is what Piers Morgan is good at. We’re waiting for his clarification on these alleged statements about Raising Malawi.

Read more about Madonna’s life, work and philanthropy: Madonna