Michael Moore

[[File:Michael moore.jpg|thumb|165px|Michael Moore, 2004.]]{{pundits}}
'''Michael Moore''' {{lived|1954}} is an [[United States|American]] documentary filmmaker, activist, and humorist who is known for his left-[[populist]] and left-[[liberal]] political commentary. He is most known for media he published from 1989 to 2007.

Moore has been criticized as occasionally prioritizing [[propaganda]] and storytelling over [[truth]], even among his allies on the left. Moore sometimes responds to criticisms of his works with [[handwave]]s or ''[[ad hominem]]'' attacks as opposed to answering to said criticisms.{{efn|An example can be found here in his defense of ''Stupid White Men'' in an interview with [[Lou Dobbs]].<ref>[http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0204/12/mlld.00.html Lou Dobbs Moneyline — Transcript] (April 12, 2002 - 18:00 ET) ''CNN''.</ref>}} 

Moore is known for [[Yellow journalism|old-school journalism]] techniques such as barging in on prospective interviewees unannounced, and mixing it with his own [[partisan]] humor. While Moore's movies are much more funny and entertaining than knockoffs, he's likely inspired an increase in disturbing [[yellow journalism]] among his ideological opponents.  One example being the right-wing rag ''Project Veritas'', which seems to repeatedly one-up Moore and others in aggressiveness, perhaps out of anger and resentment for decades of liberal-leaning political commentary [[Hostile media effect|taking the spotlight]]. Nowadays, Moore has transformed from a social activist into more of a boilerplate [[Democratic Party]] advocate.

==Lawsuit against ''Mother Jones'' magazine==
In 1986 Moore got a new job as the editor of the [[San Francisco]]-based magazine ''Mother Jones''. It lasted about five minutes; as a [[Michigan]] boy, he didn't quite fit the San Francisco culture, or something. The ostensible reason, depending on which side you believe, is either that Moore nixed an article critical of the Sandinistas in [[Nicaragua]], or that ''Mother Jones'' nixed a cover story about General Motors plant closings in Michigan. In any case, Moore sued for wrongful dismissal, settled out of court, and took his winnings to finance his first film, ''Roger & Me'', which was about those GM plant closings.

==Filmmaking==
Michael Moore's documentaries are dressed up political commentaries. While often completely on the mark, they are also sometimes not particularly concerned with documenting things, or establishing a fully accurate narrative or an accurate sequence of events. This has led Moore's critics to criticize him of simply being a propagandist.

===''Roger & Me''===
Roger & Me was a 1989 documentary about the human consequences of General Motors layoffs in the town of Flint, Michigan. 

At this time, Moore had connections to [[Ralph Nader]]'s social circle. Nader, Nader associates, and United Auto Workers' [[union]] leaders had varying negative reactions to ''Roger & Me''. Nader and his associates implied that the film was just "[[satire]]" and neglected activism against GM that had occurred for years prior. A Nader associate also alleged that Moore was selfishly capitalizing on information about GM that he had allegedly acquired through private talks with Nader's circle, and using it for a false premise. One of the alleged false premises of the film was that the CEO of GM was impossible to pin down for an interview. According to one of Nader's associates, Moore had allegedly pinned down the CEO of GM for an interview outside of the events of the film, during a 1988 auto technology exposition. As a response to the film, Nader asked that Moore repay $30,000 to a journalistic non-profit that had helped subsidize a side project that Moore had abandoned while working on ''Roger & Me''. U.A.W. leaders complained that the film falsely portrayed their union president as not caring about layoffs.<ref name="NYtimes">Levin, Devon P., [http://www.nytimes.com/1990/01/19/movies/maker-of-documentary-that-attacks-gm-alienates-his-allies.html "Maker of Documentary That Attacks G.M. Alienates His Allies"], ''[[New York Times]]'' 1.19.90.</ref>

Moore's response to the criticism was that his political allies were 'resentful' of him, and that he could have included more events, and more accurately portrayed events, in the film, but wanted to keep the runtime short.<ref name="NYtimes" />

==="Testify"===
In 1999, Michael Moore directed a [[Rage Against the Machine]] video whose basic thesis was that [[George W. Bush]] and [[Al Gore]] were [[Balance fallacy|exactly the same]].{{efn|Yes, you read that correctly.}}

===''Bowling for Columbine''===
{{main|Bowling for Columbine}}
This is a movie wherein Moore blames the Columbine shooting and American gun violence on what Moore believes is a historical American culture of insecurity, [[Fear, uncertainty, and doubt|fear]], and [[racism]]. Moore claims that the American [[elite]] advances this culture for selfish gain. Moore claims in the film that the ready availability of guns alone does not cause gun violence. He also suggests that violent [[video games]], violent media in general, and lascivious music artists should not be a [[moral panic]] or much a cause for concern. The film never reaches a firm conclusion, instead focusing on debunking popular explanations for gun violence. After the film's release, Moore suggested that the Columbine shooting could have been caused by psychiatric drugs like SSRI antidepressants in a 2012 [[YouTube]] video, and pushed for an investigation into child psychiatry.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DpinCRaAQOk</ref> The YouTube video cited an academic article by David Healy, et al and says that

{{cquote|Both clinical trial and pharmacovigilance data point to possible links between these [SSRI drugs] and violent behaviours... Many jurisdictions appear not to have considered the possibility that a prescription drug may induce violence.

In these trials, hostile events are found to excess in both adults and children on paroxetine compared with placebo & are found across indications, & both on therapy & during withdrawal.|David Healy et al<ref>https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1564177/</ref>}}

Eric Harris, for example, was prescribed and began regularly taking the 'antidepressant' (anhedonic) SSRI Luvox, not long before launching his attack. A definitive assessment of any link between antidepressants and violence is still lacking as of 2022, but a [[Review article|systematic review]] and [[meta-analysis]] was begun in 2021.<ref>https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7812107/</ref>

===''Fahrenheit 9/11''===
''Fahrenheit 9/11'' was an [[anti-war]] film that criticized the rationale for the [[Iraq War|US going to war with Iraq]] during 2003. The film included [[Conspiracy theory|conspiracy theorizing]], including highlighting alleged business connections between the Bushes ([[George H. W. Bush]] and [[George W. Bush]]) and the Bin Ladens ([[Osama bin Laden]]'s family owns a major construction company in [[Saudi Arabia]]). George W. Bush is paraded around as a pure force of idiocratic [[evil]] who is tight with Saudi Arabia. 

This movie also contains [[Quote mining#Fahrenheit 9/11|quote mining]], where {{wpl|Condoleezza Rice||,}} who was national security advisor at the time, is portrayed as arguing that there was a link between [[Saddam Hussein]] and the [[9/11]] attacks, even though she was actually saying the opposite.

In 2004, Moore made a false prediction about then-President George W. Bush, declaring that if Bush was re-elected:

{{cquote|…he's going to bring back the [[draft]]. He will be forced to. Because, thanks to his crazy war, recruitment is going to be at an all-time low. And many of the troops stuck over there are NOT going to re-enlist. The only way Bush is going to be able to staff the military is to draft you and your friends. Parents, make no mistake about it — Bush's second term will see your sons taken from you and sent to fight wars for the oily rich.}}

Over nineteen years later, the draft had not been reintroduced.{{efn|It will be reintroduced any day now. It'll come real soon, we promise.}}

===''Sicko''===
In ''Sicko'' (2007), Moore reminds Americans how much their [[health care]] system sucks and how [[Republicans]] are particularly bad at ensuring that citizens get health coverage. He also gave the [[Cuban]] [[Fidel Castro|dictatorship]] a propaganda photo op on his trip there (in truth, not everyone gets such prompt care by their system).

===''Fahrenheit 11/9''===
''Fahrenheit 11/9'' is a 2018 movie about [[Donald Trump]], then-Michigan Governor {{wpl|Rick Snyder||,}} and the [[Flint water crisis]]. We knew he would make one eventually. As you may have guessed, the name is a reference to his previous film, ''[[#Farenheit 9/11|Fahrenheit 9/11]]'', as well as November 9<sup>th</sup>, 2016, when Trump won the presidential election.

===''Planet of the Humans''===
{{cquote|The film's case is akin to arguing that because fruit contains [[sugar]], eating strawberries is no healthier than eating a cheesecake.|||Dana Nuccitelli<ref>[https://www.yaleclimateconnections.org/2020/05/michael-moores-planet-of-the-humans-documentary-peddles-dangerous-climate-denial/ Michael Moore's 'Planet of the Humans' documentary peddles dangerous climate denial: The YouTube film offers outdated and wildly misleading information on renewable energy, sacrificing progress in pursuit of unachievable perfection.] by Dana Nuccitelli (Friday, May 1, 2020) ''Yale Climate Connections''.</ref>}}
''Planet of the Humans'' (2019), directed by Jeff Gibbs and produced by Moore, is a film about the [[Environmentalism|green movement]] which argues that existing "green technology" is a false promise that will not solve our environmental issues.  Furthermore, the film argues that the promotion of green technology as a solution to our environmental woes is aiding the arrival of a human extinction event from climate catastrophe.  The director interviews many workers and leaders in the renewable energy sector, some of whom are open that their products are not in fact renewable energy, while others are portrayed as evasive or dishonest.  They also argue that mass media lies about the what constitutes renewable energy usage and the effectiveness of 'green technology' solutions to sustain American consumption without harming the environment.

Controversially, the film promotes environmental malthusianism and believes current population growth itself is too dangerous for the environment.  The film further argues that human domination over resources and animal species may be indicative of a lack of restraint and an overconfidence in our faculties that will lead to a human extinction event.  The film reaches its most extremist moment when it platforms an individual who believes that only a mass death of humans can prevent an environmental catastrophe.  A Guardian author called the film "dangerous, shockingly misleading and absurd."<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/apr/28/climate-dangerous-documentary-planet-of-the-humans-michael-moore-taken-down Climate experts call for 'dangerous' Michael Moore film to be taken down: Planet of the Humans, which takes aim at the green movement, is ‘full of misinformation’, says one online library] by Oliver Milman (28 Apr 2020 08.54 EDT) ''The Guardian''.</ref> Another Guardian author claims the film inadvertently aligns itself with far-right movements.<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/may/07/michael-moore-far-right-climate-crisis-deniers-film-environment-falsehoods How did Michael Moore become a hero to climate deniers and the far right?] by George Monbiot (updated 7 May 2020 19.03 BST) ''The Guardian''.</ref> The film exposes the environmental destruction used in the creation of so-called "Green" energy technologies in Vermont and Michigan. 

The film criticizes [[Barack Obama]], Van Jones, [[Al Gore]], Richard Branson, [[Elon Musk]], Apple Inc., the Koch brothers, Vinod Kohsla, Goldman Sachs, [[RFK Jr]], [[Michael Bloomberg]], the Sierra Club among other promoters of green technology solutions to climate change.  The film also follows a local, grassroots environmental group concerned about the environmental impact of new wind turbines pushed by big businesses.  They spend time promoting the views of U. Oregon Professor of Environmental Studies Richard York, Penn State Anthropologist Nina Jablonski, pro-degrowth author Richard Heinberg, and 'Green Illusions' author Ozzie Zehner.  

The movie reserves a significant part of its criticism for environmentalist groups whose literature at first seems to oppose burning trees for energy, or "biomass energy", but ends up supporting biomass energy in other literature and during interviews.  When the director interviewed members of the Sierra Club, individual members depicted approve of biomass energy on camera, and the Pennsylvania Sierra Club director is shown refusing to provide an answer when confronted on camera about whether she supports biomass energy.

A solution to environmental crises presented in the film, that perhaps only economic [[degrowth]] can solve the various environmental crises, while still an unconventional take, is actually not all that controversial.  Even the head of UK Health Alliance on Climate Change agrees with that premise.<ref>https://ukhealthalliance.org/news-item/perhaps-only-degrowth-can-save-us/</ref>

==Beef with Joe Scarborough==
===Moore vs Scarborough on Bush response to 9/11===
In his film ''Fahrenheit 9/11'', Moore implied that George W. Bush authorized a transfer of the Bin Laden family after 9/11.  [[Joe Scarborough]] claimed that a Bush critic actually authorized this transfer.<ref>[http://www.nbcnews.com/id/5296236/ns/msnbc-morning_joe/t/fahrenheit-distorts-truth/ "Fahrenheit 9/11" distorts the truth: Deceit and deception is breathtaking] by Joe Scarborough (updated 6/25/2004 12:10:23 PM ET) ''NBC News''.</ref>

===Scarborough as murderer conspiracy===
He also spread a particularly vicious (and debunked) conspiracy theory that Scarborough had murdered one of his Congressional staff members.<ref>[https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/florida-family-grieves-as-trump-spreads-debunked-conspiracy-theory-to-attack-msnbc-host/2020/05/24/8a0a45a6-9dcd-11ea-b5c9-570a91917d8d_story.html Florida family grieves as Trump spreads debunked conspiracy theory to attack MSNBC host] by Craig Pittman (May 24, 2020 at 1:02 p.m. PDT) ''The Washington Post''.</ref><ref>[https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/05/12/trumps-vicious-claim-that-joe-scarborough-might-have-murdered-an-aide/ Trump’s vicious claim that Joe Scarborough might have murdered an aide] by Salvador Rizzo (May 12, 2020 at 11:15 a.m. PDT) ''The Washington Post''.</ref>

==Wildly off-base political predictions==
Moore wrote over 40 blog posts predicting that Democrats would retake the US House and Senate during 2022, in a way that would resemble a "tsunami". He theorized such a thing would happen as a negative reaction to [[abortion]] rights being overturned by the [[US Supreme Court]].<ref>https://www.michaelmoore.com/p/midterm-tsunami-truth-40</ref> No such tsunami transpired,<ref>https://www.michaelmoore.com/p/midterm-tsunami-truth-41</ref> and Moore ended his short streak of correct political predictions (which had occurred once before, when he predicted Trump would win the [[2016 U.S. presidential election|2016 election]]<ref>https://michaelmoore.com/trumpwillwin/</ref>).

==Christopher Hitchens on Moore==
[[Christopher Hitchens|Hitch]] wasn't too fond of him, remarking that it was quite [[hypocritical]] of the European left, who regard the average American to be a fat, stupid, greedy white man, to embrace Moore, who absolutely embodies all of these traits, as their figurehead.{{cn}} Hitchens was also critical of ''Fahrenheit 9/11''.<ref name=hitch>https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2004/06/the-lies-of-michael-moore.html</ref> Then again, Hitch was pro-[[War on Terror]] in general.

==More of Moore==
Moore paid [[Julian Assange]]'s bail, which was greater than USD100,000, in December 2010. However, given the nastiness that Assange and [[Wikileaks]] have been up to, that should be re-reassessed (irresponsibly endangering the lives of innocent and vulnerable people with unredacted leaks). He also made ''Capitalism: A Love Story'' (2009), which has a higher-than-average percentage of truth than is typical for him.

"Rust Belt [[Brexit]]" was a brilliant forecast of the situation in the Great Lakes region. (Then again, he said "Get used to saying President [[Mitt Romney|Romney]]'" back in 2012, so…) As of 2017, he was attempting to destroy the Trump presidency by… doing a Broadway show.

==Published work==
(Stolen from [[Wikipedia]])

===Books===
* Moore, Michael (1996). ''Downsize This! Random Threats from an Unarmed American''. Perennial (Harper Edition). ISBN 0-06-097733-7.
* Moore, Michael; & Glynn, Kathleen (1998). ''Adventures In A TV Nation''. Perennial. ISBN 0-06-098809-6.
* Moore, Michael (2002). ''Stupid White Men ...and Other Sorry Excuses for the State of the Nation!''. Regan Books. ISBN 0-06-039245-2.
* Moore, Michael (2003). ''Dude, Where's My Country?''. Warner Books. ISBN 0-446-53223-1.
* Moore, Michael (2004). ''Will They Ever Trust Us Again?''. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0-7432-7152-1.
* Moore, Michael (2004). ''The Official Fahrenheit 9/11 Reader''. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0-7432-7292-7.
* Moore, Michael (2010). ''Here Comes Trouble''. Penguin. ISBN 0-713-99701-9

===Films===
* ''Roger & Me'' (1989)
* ''Pets or Meat: The Return to Flint'' (1992) (TV)
* ''Canadian Bacon'' (1995) (Non-documentary comedy)
* ''The Big One'' (1997)
* ''And Justice for All'' (1998) (TV)
* ''Lucky Numbers'' (2000)
* ''[[Bowling for Columbine]]'' (2002) (Winner - Best Documentary Feature Oscar)
* ''[[Fahrenheit 9/11]]'' (2004) (Winner - "Palme d'Or" in Cannes)
* ''Sicko'' (2007)
* ''Capitalism: A Love Story'' (2009)
* ''Where to Invade Next'' (2015)
* ''Michael Moore in TrumpLand'' (2016)
*''Fahrenheit 11/9'' (2018)
*''Planet of the Humans'' (2019) — as producer

===TV series===
* ''TV Nation'' (1994)
* ''The Awful Truth'' (1999)
* ''Michael Moore Live'' (1999)

==See also==
*[[Steve Bannon]] — A "right-populist", socially conservative Mike, [[Matt Taibbi|described]] as "a Banana Republic version of Charles Bukowski."
*[[Truthiness]]

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=note}}

==References==
{{reflist|2|80%}}

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Categories: Authors, Conspiracy theorists, Denialists, Entertainers, Film-makers, Liberals, Left-wing activists, Living people