Don't be surprised if you hear a lot about volunteerism on TV this week

Matt Damon strong-armed Vincent Chase into giving a hefty chunk of change to his ONEXONE children's charity on the season finale of HBO's Entourage. Ugly Betty's star brought NothingButNets' malaria-prevention message into the recent launch of the ABC dramedy. Call it do-gooder TV, where creators stitch a real-world charity into a fictional storyline in the hope that it'll have more of an effect than some stiff PSA. This kind of feel-good product placement is already hot (like, during American Heart Month), but it's about to get a lot hotter. More than 100 shows on the major networks and cable channels like Lifetime, Nickelodeon and CNN are touting volunteerism this week as part of a link with I Participate, a campaign to encourage people to give back to their communities. A charity group called the Entertainment Industry Foundation has spearheaded the effort as a follow-up to last year's Stand Up to Cancer, which raised more than $100 million. The placements will pop up everywhere from morning news shows and soaps to prime-time and late-night series. As a result, some of your favorite TV characters will be putting in time at food banks, signing up to be Big Brothers and Big Sisters, saving animals from shelters and building parks and playgrounds. Sound like a valiant effort all around? Not to some on the far right, who are accusing the EIF and Hollywood of being mouthpieces for the Obama administration. For the record: I Participate is nonpartisan. And for the critics, who obviously have time to spare: Put down the laptop and pick up a hammer. Habitat for Humanity could use you.

—Posted by T.L. Stanley