DOCSLIB.ORG

Not a Stupid White Man.Pdf

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Not a Stupid White Man.Pdf This article was downloaded by: [University College Falmouth ] On: 26 August 2014, At: 06:53 Publisher: Routledge Informa Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK Journal of Popular Film and Television Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/vjpf20 Not a Stupid White Man: The Democratic Context of Michael Moore's Documentaries Anna Misiak a a Institute of Philosophy and Sociology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland Published online: 07 Aug 2010. To cite this article: Anna Misiak (2005) Not a Stupid White Man: The Democratic Context of Michael Moore's Documentaries, Journal of Popular Film and Television, 33:3, 160-168, DOI: 10.3200/JPFT.33.4.160-168 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.3200/JPFT.33.4.160-168 PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the “Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors, and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Content should not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sources of information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims, proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to or arising out of the use of the Content. This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Any substantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing, systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden. Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http:// www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions PERSPECTIVES a Stupid White Man The Democratic Context of Michael Moore’s Documentaries By ANNA MISIAK Abstract: The author presents the tempts to ignite an essential democrat- award-winning director Michael ic impulse among American citizens. Moore as a social phenomenon. His He assumes the role of a provocateur controversial documentary works and who raises the consciousness of his public speeches are shown in the con- audiences and offers a polemical voice text of American democracy. Moore’s to the power elite. Whereas Moore’s output is seen through the prism of advocates recognize his output as an Downloaded by [University College Falmouth ] at 06:53 26 August 2014 cultural hegemony as described by admirable practical realization of the Gramsci. free speech principle, his adversaries often perceive him as a menace to de- Key words: democracy; documentary; mocratic procedures. Considering the Moore, Michael; political discourse nationwide dispute and the popularity of his movies around the world, the di- he controversial documentaries rector should be acknowledged as a by Michael Moore have pro- significant phenomenon on the Ameri- Tvoked public debate on social can political scene at the dawn of the and political matters since the end of twenty-first century. the 1980s. With his films, books In 1988, Michael Moore released capitalism toward Flint’s growing (Dude, Where’s My Country?, Down- his first documentary Roger and Me. It poverty level (Georgakas and Saltz 4). size This! Random Threats from an held the automobile industry responsi- Then, for a short while, Moore worked Unarmed American, Adventures in a ble for the impoverishment in the di- for television and even managed to TV Nation, Stupid White Men . and rector’s hometown of Flint, Michigan. produce the feature Canadian Bacon Other Sorry Excuses for the State of Roger Smith of General Motors sym- (1995). Real popularity, however, es- the Nation), and speeches, Moore at- bolized the indifference of corporate caped him until Bowling for Colum- 160 Downloaded by [University College Falmouth ] at 06:53 26 August 2014 Michael Moore takes on the war in Iraq in Fahrenheit 9/11. bine (2002), an investigative story that Moore two very prestigious awards: remembered well for the words, “We takes viewers on a tour from the origin the Special Prize of the fifty-fifth live in fictitious times. We live in the and consequence of omnipresent vio- Cannes Film Festival and an Academy time where we have fictitious election lence in America through the April Award in 2003. That Oscar night, he results that elect a fictitious president. 1999 shootings at Columbine High took the occasion to pronounce his po- We live in a time where we have a man School in Colorado. litical opinions in an aggressive and sending us to war for fictitious rea- The “violence” documentary earned loud manner. His acceptance speech is sons. Shame on you, Mr. Bush. 161 162 JPF&T—Journal of Popular Film and Television Shame on you.”1 Immediately, Moore he would be persistent until “this man The director does not present the was accused of exploiting the situa- [George W. Bush] is out of office.” counterpoint in a shallow way. His tion. Expressing his profound discontent- analyses are preceded by careful Later, during the post-Oscar press ment with corporate capitalism, the preparatory work. He makes an effort conference, he attempted to justify his American Right, corruption, and poli- to trace media information, people’s acceptance speech by declaring, “I’m tics in general, Moore has chosen to reactions, and archival materials. an American.” And when asked by a make his point of view clear through Most of all, he is interested in the facts surprised journalist, “That’s it?” the documentary form. Nevertheless, not widely known to the public, and Moore replied, “That’s a lot.” Then he his movies are not just imitations of certainly Moore deserves credit for continued, “I love my country. I love the political realities as he sees them. his hard work as a researcher. He democracy.” Undoubtedly, these All through his work in the cinematic should be recognized not only as a words demonstrate the essence of his field, the director attempts to instruct filmmaker but also, and maybe most attitude and provide a reason for all of the American public. His movies are important, as an investigative journal- his undertakings. Moore portrays him- rooted in the tradition of reflexive doc- ist, who potently reveals the underly- self as a devoted believer in American ing events of political and social mat- democratic values, and this faith spurs All through his work in ters. What constitutes the core of him to action. From the very begin- Moore’s story of America is usually ning of his movie career, he puts for- the cinematic field, the portrayed in the form of superficial ward criticism of contemporary Amer- and incoherent glimpses on television ican politics and society. According to director attempts to and in the press. He depicts the other Moore, democracy is not limited sole- side, usually the darker one, of poli- ly to the electoral process but should instruct the American tics and society. be practiced to achieve a high level of Moore’s filmic vision of contempo- egalitarianism in American society. public. His movies are rary America comprises the facts that Moore’s incendiary film Fahrenheit in most cases are not publicized by 9/11 (2004) disparages the capacity of rooted in the mainstream media. Through shifting Republicans to perform governmental tradition of reflexive focus to undisclosed political nuances, duties. Dealing with the presidency of Moore contrives the strategy of pro- George W. Bush, terrorism, war in documentary. jecting his pictures as personal state- Iraq, and the war’s social and political ments. Instead of speaking as an om- implications, the production instigated niscient narrator, he seeks to capture much public debate. The social dispu- umentary. The theoretical standpoint the imagination of spectators by voic- tation heated up after the director was for this mode of filmmaking is ing his subjective concerns. Not only awarded the Palme d’Or (given for the grounded in the works of Bertolt does he send the message, “Look, this first time to a documentary filmmaker Brecht, Jean-Luc Godard’s postulates, is what really happens, and in most since Jacques Costeau’s The Silent and 1970s British Screen journal arti- cases you are not aware of it,” but usu- World in 1956) and continued with the cles. Very popular among leftist film- ally he indirectly adds, “This is what I difficulties Moore experienced with makers and theoreticians, reflexive found out about the situation.” Fur- the film’s American distribution. documentaries serve the intention of thermore, he appears as one of the Downloaded by [University College Falmouth ] at 06:53 26 August 2014 Michael Moore came a long way challenging the probity of the social characters in his movies, not for the from Roger and Me through Bowling and political order of our times’ capi- simple sake of showing off but to em- for Columbine to Fahrenheit 9/11. He talistic and democratic systems. phasize that the films are manifesta- never conceals that he assumes to ful- As Izod and Kilborn write, “The po- tions of his convictions. He titles his fill a mission through his documen- litical dimension of the reflexive proj- film Roger and Me, protests in front of taries, but, while remonstrating with ect lies partly in the way such films Kmart with some of the victims of the the failures of corporate capitalism, he imply that people’s memory percep- Columbine shooting, and tries to per- appeared to be a social critic.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The Brookings Institution
    1 THE BROOKINGS INSTITUTION Brookings Briefing PUBLIC PHILOSOPHY: WHY MORALITY MATTERS IN POLITICS Tuesday, January 24, 2006 MICHAEL SANDEL WILLIAM GALSTON CHARLES KRAUTHAMMER E.J. DIONNE, JR., Moderator [TRANSCRIPT PRODUCED FROM A TAPE RECORDING] MILLER REPORTING CO., INC. 735 8th STREET, S.E. WASHINGTON, D.C. 20003-2802 (202) 546-6666 2 P R O C E E D I N G S MR. DIONNE: [In progress] —become important to their time not by seeking in a contrived and silly way something called relevance, they become important to their time by thinking clearly systematically and insightfully about public issues and public problems. And by that measure, Mike Sandel is truly one of our moment's most important political and public philosophers. So I loved it when Mike finally put out this collection called "Public Philosophy," of which we in general and, I personally believe, liberals in particular are very much in search of. I just want to read one brief passage from the beginning of Mike's book, which gives you a sense of how relevant his discussion is to our moment. He notes that the Democrats have been struggling for awhile over what some call the "moral values thing." "When Democrats in recent times have reached for moral and religious resonance," he writes, "their efforts have taken two forms, neither wholly convincing. Some, following the example of George W. Bush, have sprinkled their speeches with religious rhetoric and biblical references. So intense was the competition for divine favor in the 2000 and 2004 campaigns that a Web site, beliefnet.com, established a God-o- meter to track the candidates' references to God.
    [Show full text]
  • (Dis)Encounters in Oliver Stones's South Of
    101 HEMISPHERIC TRAVELLING AND (DIS)ENCOUNTERS IN OLIVER STONES’S SOUTH OF THE 1 Anelise R. Corseuil Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina RESUMO: O filme de Oliver Stone "Ao Sul da Fronteira", produzido em 2009, apresenta entrevistas e depoimentos de diversos presidentes latino-americanos, focalizando as diferenças políticas entre a América Latina e os Estados Unidos. Neste contexto, este trabalho analisa os discursos conflitantes subjacentes ao filme, quais sejam, seus discursos denunciatórios do neoliberalismo e o apagamento de diferenças nacionais da América Latina através da própria construção estética e narrativa fílmica e da projeção de um discurso democrata e anti-republicano, que perpassa a visão política da América Latina de Oliver Stone. PALAVRAS-CHAVE: Documentário; Narrativas de viagem; Oliver Stone; América Latina. ABSTRACT: Military dictatorships, guerrillas and geopolitical conflicts in Latin- American countries like Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Mexico, Nicaragua and El Salvador have been the object of analysis in various Canadian and American fictional films and documentaries in the last decades. Innumerable films and documentaries produced in Canada and the U.S. with institutional have depicted geopolitical conflicts in Latin America. Within this context of filmic production, this paper analyzes Oliver Stone´s documentary “South of the Border”, produced in 2009. Stone presents various interviews by former Latin American presidents. The film focuses on political differences between Latin America national politics and US foreign policies, as well as on US major TV Channels and its manipulation of the media, regarding Latin American political arena. The paper analyzes the conflicting discourses imbued in the film: its denouncing tone of neoliberalism and the erasure of Latin American national differences in the aesthetics choices and narrative techniques of the film.
    [Show full text]
  • Populism in a Divided America Stephen Richardson
    CONTRIBUTOR BIO STEPHEN RICHARDSON is a third year political science student, concentrat- ing in pre-law, and is a member of the Cal Poly Marksmanship Club. Stephen is a Marine veteran who was stationed in Okinawa, Japan from 2009-2011. Stephen hopes to eventually pursue a career in international law or diplomacy focused in national security. POPULISM IN A DIVIDED AMERICA Stephen Richardson “It’s the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, Black, White, Hispanic, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been just a collection of individuals or a collection of red states and blue states. We are, and always will be, the United States of America.” — Former President Barack Obama’s 2008 Victory Speech Former President Barack Obama most likely did not foresee how ironic this quote would become when he took the stage in Chicago after his historic 2008 election. Americans are now more divided and polarized than he could have imagined. Cultural divisions and political partisanship have been reaching fever-pitch, as a wave of populism has swept through Europe and the United States, fanning fears of demagoguery. With Brexit in the United Kingdom, and President Trump’s shocking victory in the US, many mainstream observers fear that fascism is both spreading through and threatening liberal democracies.1 1 Sheri Berman, “Populism is not Fascism: But it Could Be a Harbinger.” Foreign Affairs, December, 2016, 39. paideia Fascism is profoundly different than populism, and attempts to claim that recent events equate to fascism are exaggerated and incorrect.
    [Show full text]
  • Bowling for Columbine 5
    Institut for Informations- og Medievidenskab Aarhus Universitet p.o.v. A Danish Journal of Film Studies Editor Richard Raskin Number 16 December 2003 Department of Information and Media Studies University of Aarhus 2 p.o.v. number 16 December 2003 Udgiver: Institut for Informations- og Medievidenskab Aarhus Universitet Helsingforsgade 14 DK-8200 Aarhus N Oplag: 350 eksemplarer Trykkested: Repro-Afdeling, Det Humanistiske Fakultet Aarhus Universitet ISSN-nr.: 1396-1160 Omslag: Jakob Elias Nielsen Articles Copyright © 2003 the authors. The publication of this issue of p.o.v. was made possible by a grant from the Aarhus University Research Foundation. All correspondence should be addressed to: Richard Raskin Department of Information and Media Studies Helsingforsgade 14 DK-8200 Aarhus N, Denmark e-mail: [email protected] telephone: +45 89 42 9223 All issues of p.o.v. can be found on the Internet at: http://imv.au.dk/publikationer/pov/POV.html The contents of this journal are indexed in the MLA International Bibliography, the Film Literature Index and the International Index of Film Periodicals. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE The principal purpose of p.o.v. is to provide a framework for collaborative publication for those of us who study and teach film at the Department of Information and Media Studies at the University of Aarhus. We will also invite contributions from colleagues in other departments and at other universities. Our emphasis is on collaborative projects, enabling us to combine our efforts, each bringing his or her own point of view to bear on a given film or genre or theoretical problem.
    [Show full text]
  • William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe
    WILLIAM KUNSTLER: DISTURBING THE UNIVERSE A film by Emily Kunstler and Sarah Kunstler An 85-minute documentary film. Digital Video. Color & Black & White. Premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2009 Released theatrically by Arthouse Films in November 2009 Released on DVD on April 27, 2010 Broadcast on PBS on June 22, 2010 on the award-winning documentary series P.O.V. as the season’s opening night film. A wonderful, inspiring film. – Howard Zinn Expertly put together and never less than compelling. -The Hollywood Reporter A superior documentary. – The Los Angeles Times Shatteringly good. – The San Francisco Chronicle A fascinating portrait. – The Washington Post A magnificent profile of an irrepressible personality. – Indiewire This is a wonderful film. Emily and Sarah Kunstler have done a remarkable job. The film is great history – Alec Baldwin A sensitive truthful, insightful film. – Huffington Post A brilliant and even-handed portrait. – Hamptons.com A perfect balance of the personal and the public. - Salt Lake City Weekly A wonderful, weird, and very American story. – The Stranger A well-crafted and intimate but not uncritical tribute to both a father and a legend of the Left – The Indypendent Might just help reawaken viewers to find their own Goliaths and slingshots. - The Jewish Journal Page 2 of 15 The Film’s Title The title of the film comes from T. S. Eliot’s poem, The Love Song of Alfred J. Prufrock. At the end of his life, many of Kunstler’s speeches were entreaties to young people to have the courage take action for change. He frequently spoke about Michelangelo’s statue of David as embodying the moment when a person must choose to stand up or to fade into the crowd and lead an unexceptional life.
    [Show full text]
  • Transcript a Pinewood Dialogue with Michael Moore
    TRANSCRIPT A PINEWOOD DIALOGUE WITH MICHAEL MOORE Michael Moore is the most famous, controversial, and commercially successful documentary filmmaker working today. The notoriety surrounding his films has obscured the fact that he is a gifted director who uses a wide range of cinematic techniques to engage, entertain, and provoke his audience. Sicko , his widely acclaimed, no-holds barred attack on the American healthcare system, uses the issue of healthcare to explore larger questions about what kind of country America is. In this discussion presented by the Museum of the Moving Image in collaboration with Variety , Moore spoke passionately about the many questions raised by his film. A Pinewood Dialogue following a screening of this country and say to those on the other side of Sicko , moderated by Chief Curator David the political fence, “Look, aren’t there some issues Schwartz (June 28, 2007): where we can find some common ground and work together on this? And it shouldn’t be about DAVID SCHWARTZ: Congratulations on the film. The Democrat or Republican. If the polar ice caps are film was rushed into the theaters last week and I melting, that affects all of us. If 47 million people understand that you went to some of the don’t have health insurance, that affects all of us. screenings at the Lincoln Square [theater]. The film Can’t we agree to fix this?” So I do hope that that has gotten really an amazing response. will happen. Having said that, that may make my most subversive film, because I am attempting to MICHAEL MOORE: Well… (Applause) reach deep into mainstream America with this movie.
    [Show full text]
  • David Ray Griffin Foreword by Richard Folk
    THE NEW PEARL HARBOR Disturbing Questions about the Bush Administration and 9/11 by David Ray Griffin foreword by Richard Folk CONTENTS Acknowledgements vi Forword by Richard Falk vii Introduction xi PART ONE THE EVENTS OF 9 / 11 1. Flights 11 and 175: How Could the Hijackers' Missions Have Succeeded? 3 2. Flight 77: Was It Really the Aircraft that Struck the Pentagon? 25 3. Flight 93: Was It the One Flight that was Shot Down? 49 4. The Presidents Behavior. Why Did He Act as He Did? 57 PART TWO THE LARGER CONTEXT 5. Did US Officials Have Advance Information about 9/11? 67 6. Did US Officials Obstruct Investigations Prior to 9/11? 75 7. Did US Officials Have Reasons for Allowing 9/11? 89 8. Did US Officials Block Captures and Investigations after 9/11? 105 PART THREE CONCLUSION 9. Is Complicity by US Officials the Best Explanation? 127 10. The Need for a Full Investigation 147 Notes 169 Index of Names 210 Back Cover Text OLIVE BRANCH PRESS An imprint of Interlink Publishing Group, Inc. Northampton, Massachusetts First published in 2004 by OLIVE BRANCH PRESS An imprint of Interlink Publishing Group, Inc. 46 Crosby Street, Northampton, Massachusetts 01060 www.interlinkbooks.com Text copyright © David Ray Griffin 2004 Foreword copyright © Richard Falk 2004 All rights reserved. No pan of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher unless National Security in endangered and education is essential for survival people and their nation .
    [Show full text]
  • RTS TV Jobs Guide 2018
    TV JOBS GUIDE HOWHOW TOTO TELETELE VVGETGET INTO INTO II SS II ON ON HOW TO SURVIVE AS A FREELANCER LOUIS THEROUX’S INTERVIEW TIPS WRITE THE NEXT LINE OF DUTY HOW TO GET THE PERFECT SHOT 5 Smart moves 6 A running start A foot in the door is the It’s the ultimate entry- first step, says Holly Close. level job and a hard Now you need to graft, but it can open keep it up all kinds of futures there 8 Cast your net wide Without you, the show would have no exclusives, no guests and no archive footage 12 Headline snapper Covering the news is all about hitting deadlines in the Story first face of unforseen 10 events Good storytelling is central to editing – and editing is central to all TV shows 14 Hear this! It’s all about knowing what’s possible, says Strictly’s Tony Revell It’s all in the light 13 The pros shed light on shooting Centre of big-budget 16 attention dramas Keep it raw, rather than falsely polished – you can be yourself and still stand out, says Chris Stark 2 20 Write now Line of Duty creator Jed Mercurio Making headlines took time out of filming 18 series 5 to share his advice for writers Follow your curiosity, says who want to see their work on screen Louis Theroux – but don’t forget your audience 22 Freelance survival guide Job hunting How to make a success 24 What employers of self-employment – are looking for in and who to turn to for your CV, letter advice and support and interview 26 Get in training 28 Love TV? So do we Find out about a wide variety The RTS is committed to of training schemes from helping young people make broadcasters, producers and their way in television professional organisations Television is not an industry for the faint hearted, but the results can be hugely rewarding.
    [Show full text]
  • Irony As a Mode of Political Engagement
    UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations 1-1-2008 Irony as a mode of political engagement Daniel Ladislau Horvath University of Nevada, Las Vegas Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/rtds Repository Citation Horvath, Daniel Ladislau, "Irony as a mode of political engagement" (2008). UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations. 2351. http://dx.doi.org/10.25669/cxgm-pzsr This Thesis is protected by copyright and/or related rights. It has been brought to you by Digital Scholarship@UNLV with permission from the rights-holder(s). You are free to use this Thesis in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s) directly, unless additional rights are indicated by a Creative Commons license in the record and/ or on the work itself. This Thesis has been accepted for inclusion in UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Scholarship@UNLV. For more information, please contact [email protected]. IRONY AS A MODE OF POLITICAL ENGAGEMENT by Daniel Ladislau Horvath Bachelor of Arts Babes Bolyai University, Cluj Napoca, Romania 1999 Master of Arts Babes Bolyai University, Cluj Napoca, Romania 2005 A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Arts Degree in Communication Studies Department of Communication Studies Greenspun College of Urban Affairs Graduate College University of Nevada, Las Vegas August 2008 UMI Number: 1460471 INFORMATION TO USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleed-through, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction.
    [Show full text]
  • Documentary Films Audiences in Europe Findings from the Moving Docs Survey
    1 Credit: Moving Docs DOCUMENTARY FILMS AUDIENCES IN EUROPE FINDINGS FROM THE MOVING DOCS SURVEY HUW D JONES July 2020 2 CONTENTS Project team .............................................................................................................................................................................. 3 Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................................................................... 4 Foreword ................................................................................................................................................................................... 5 Key findings ............................................................................................................................................................................... 6 Introduction .............................................................................................................................................................................. 8 Study method ............................................................................................................................................................................ 9 1. Who watches documentaries? ........................................................................................................................................ 11 2. Where are documentaries viewed? ...............................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • The Cable Network in an Era of Digital Media: Bravo and the Constraints of Consumer Citizenship
    University of Massachusetts Amherst ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst Doctoral Dissertations Dissertations and Theses Fall August 2014 The Cable Network in an Era of Digital Media: Bravo and the Constraints of Consumer Citizenship Alison D. Brzenchek University of Massachusetts Amherst Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations_2 Part of the Communication Technology and New Media Commons, Critical and Cultural Studies Commons, Cultural History Commons, Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Commons, Film and Media Studies Commons, History of Science, Technology, and Medicine Commons, and the Political Economy Commons Recommended Citation Brzenchek, Alison D., "The Cable Network in an Era of Digital Media: Bravo and the Constraints of Consumer Citizenship" (2014). Doctoral Dissertations. 55. https://doi.org/10.7275/bjgn-vg94 https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations_2/55 This Open Access Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Dissertations and Theses at ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. It has been accepted for inclusion in Doctoral Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE CABLE NETWORK IN AN ERA OF DIGITAL MEDIA: BRAVO AND THE CONSTRAINTS OF CONSUMER CITIZENSHIP A Dissertation Presented by ALISON D. BRZENCHEK Submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Massachusetts Amherst in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY May 2014 Department
    [Show full text]
  • Filmmakers As Social Advocates – a New
    Public Relations Journal Vol. 3, No. 4, Fall 2009 © 2009 Public Relations Society of America Filmmakers as Social Advocates—A New Challenge for Issues Management: Claims-making and Framing in Four Social Issue Documentaries Mechelle Martz-Mayfield and Kirk Hallahan, Ph.D., APR, Fellow PRSA This study examines the rise of the social issue documentary film as a medium deserving serious attention by issues managers. After tracing the development of the genre, the papers argues that commercial filmmakers serve as important secondary advocates for causes through highly visible, commercial film productions that frame issues in provocative ways, ascribe blame, and call for social change. A content analysis of four contemporary American films targeting major corporations – Starbucks, McDonalds, Wal-Mart and General Motors – examined the use of issue framing and five story-telling devices identified in the claims-making literature: interviews, statistics, dramatizations, symbols, and celebrities. An additional important tool was identified: the presentation of documentary evidence. Implications for issues management are discussed. The social issue documentary film has been rejuvenated as an art form that draws attention to social problems, and today the genre enjoys growing commercial success as filmmakers strive to quench the public’s thirst for films with social relevance (Kipnes, 2004). Recent productions such as Robert Kenner’s Food, Inc. (2009), Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth (2006) and Michael Moore’s Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004) and Sicko (2007) have prominently focused public attention on major social issues ranging from the environment to healthcare reform. Researchers in issues management and public relations generally have paid little attention to independently produced documentaries as channels of advocacy.
    [Show full text]