Michael Moore and the Politics of Political Documentary Jon Scott Oberacker University of Massachusetts Amherst, [email protected]
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University of Massachusetts Amherst ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst Open Access Dissertations 5-2009 The eopleP and Me: Michael Moore and the Politics of Political Documentary Jon Scott Oberacker University of Massachusetts Amherst, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/open_access_dissertations Part of the American Politics Commons, and the Social Influence and Political Communication Commons Recommended Citation Oberacker, Jon Scott, "The eP ople and Me: Michael Moore and the Politics of Political Documentary" (2009). Open Access Dissertations. 65. https://doi.org/10.7275/5h16-q576 https://scholarworks.umass.edu/open_access_dissertations/65 This Open Access Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. It has been accepted for inclusion in Open Access Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE PEOPLE AND ME: MICHAEL MOORE AND THE POLITICS OF POLITICAL DOCUMENTARY A Dissertation Presented by JON S. OBERACKER 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 2009 Department of Communication © Copyright by Jon S. Oberacker 2009 All Rights Reserved THE PEOPLE AND ME: MICHAEL MOORE AND THE POLITICS OF POLITICAL DOCUMENTARY A Dissertation Presented by JON S. OBERACKER Approved as to style and content by: _______________________________________ Carolyn Anderson, Chair _______________________________________ Lisa Henderson, Member _______________________________________ Stephen Olbrys Gencarella, Member _______________________________________ Randall Knoper, Member _______________________________________ Douglas Anderton, Acting Chair Department of Communication DEDICATION For my parents, who made this possible. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost I extend the most heartfelt thanks to my advisor, Carolyn Anderson, who has literally been with me every step of the way throughout my graduate career. As all her students know, the word “advisor” hardly does justice to the care and dedication Carolyn brings to her work as a scholar, teacher and mentor, and I am eternally grateful to have had her steady hand to guide me throughout the years. Her knowledge and expertise have shaped this dissertation in innumerable ways. Her intellectual generosity and professional mentorship have permanently effected me, both as a scholar and a teacher. I also wish to thank the members of my committee, who have each contributed greatly to this project and my own intellectual development. Lisa Henderson has been an invaluable mentor and role model to me over the years. Her intellectual rigor, creativity and commitment have left an indelible mark, not only on what I know, but on the way in which I think. I was fortunate enough to meet Stephen Gencarella in my final year of residency on campus, and he has been both mentor and friend ever since. His knowledge and understanding of political theory, and his passion for demanding that it be put to practical use, have played a crucial role in the development of this project. I owe a special debt of gratitude to Randall Knoper, whose course on American Studies was one of the true highlights of my graduate career. His willingness to engage my interest in American Pragmatism came at a critical moment in my graduate career and I am truly grateful for his expert guidance. v I would also like to thank Tom Reed, my undergraduate advisor at Dickinson College. He played a crucial role in cultivating my intellectual curiosity early on, and instilled within me the self-confidence to go further. Writing this dissertation has been an emotional, as well as intellectual, endeavor, and I have many people to thank for providing me with support throughout. I am indebted to the group of comrades that developed out of our mutual connection to the OB/GYN residency program at Baystate Medical Center. Their encouragement and support made surviving graduate school a reality. Special thanks is owed to Tracey Sutphin and Christie Miller, not only for providing me with room and board while traveling back and forth from Rhode Island, but also for fending off innumerable panic-attacks and performing many late-night pep-talks. I owe a great deal of thanks to my family, who have been there for me every step of the way, offering encouragement, commiseration and good humor. They rooted enthusiastically for me to finish, but never asked when I’d be done, and for that I am truly grateful. It is especially difficult to put the gratitude I owe my parents into words. They have seen me through every accomplishment I have ever achieved, and this project is certainly no exception. They also instilled within me the passion for education that led me down this path in the first place. But perhaps most importantly, they provided me with a model of social decency and fairness that guides the ethical focus of this dissertation. Finally, I owe the greatest debt of thanks to my wife and partner, Kristen, for agreeing to accompany me on this voyage. Quite simply, without her companionship, reassurance, patience and, most importantly, unwavering belief in me, I’d be lost. vi ABSTRACT THE PEOPLE AND ME: MICHAEL MOORE AND THE POLITICS OF POLITICAL DOCUMENTARY MAY 2009 JON S. OBERACKER, B.A., DICKINSON COLLEGE M.A., UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Ph.D., UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Directed by: Professor Carolyn Anderson Perhaps no one has had more influence on the role of political documentary in the contemporary public sphere than filmmaker Michael Moore. His unique melding of committed political arguments with an ironic reflexive style have changed the very look and feel of documentary film, contributing significantly to the form’s newfound popularity. Furthermore, his steadfast commitment to progressive politics has given the issue of socioeconomic “class” the kind of attention it rarely receives within the mainstream media. However, Moore’s films have also been the recipient of viscous attacks from his political opponents, and subject to some of the most contentious public debates over the documentary form since the 1960s. This study integrates documentary theory and poststructuralist discourse analysis within a critical/cultural studies perspective to map out the ways in which generic conventions, interpretive strategies and rhetorical maneuvers have often combined to undermine the political goals and cultural legitimacy of Michael Moore and his films. First, I look at the ways in which Moore’s own deployment of a patronizing mode of address transforms his films into “fantasies of advocacy”; narratives that invite an vii imagined audience of fellow advocates to evaluate and judge the lives and behaviors of the working-class subjects depicted on-screen. Such a depiction only works to strengthen middle-class forms of social authority which have worked, historically, to encourage class resentment. Second, I describe the ways in which Moore is also undermined by a mass media system within which progressive views are not often welcome. I explain how a number of discursive logics worked to frame Moore at various times throughout his career as an untrustworthy documentarian pushing Leftist propaganda, as an “indie film auteur” providing innovative cinematic experiences to middle-class audiences, and as a savvy celebrity-huckster selling political entertainment to embattled liberals. Finally, I describe how Moore’s opponents on the political Right exploited the problematic aspects of both his rhetorical strategies and public reception to paint Moore as a “Liberal Elitist,” a move that worked to derail the political effectiveness of Fahrenheit 9/11 during the 2004 election. By describing the complex, public articulations of Michael Moore and his films, this study contributes to the fields of documentary studies, media studies, cultural studies and political rhetoric. viii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ...................................................................................................v ABSTRACT ...................................................................................................................... vii CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION: ARTICULATING MICHAEL MOORE .................................1 Introduction ..............................................................................................................1 Literature Review: Michael Moore and the “Reflexive Turn” ................................9 Theorizing Reflexivity ...............................................................................10 The “New Documentary” and Roger & Me ...............................................16 Discourse and the Documentary Idea ........................................................23 Methodology and Chapter Overview: Michael Moore as “Cultural Study”..........28 Articulation Theory and “Media Events” ..................................................28 Analytical Methods and Chapter Outlines .................................................33 Part One: Textual Analysis ............................................................34 Part Two: Discourse Analysis ........................................................36 Part Three: Fahrenheit 9/11 as Case Study: A Rhetorical Perspective ..........................................................................43 Conclusion .............................................................................................................50