Pantagraph to Moore: Headline use 'misleading' 07/30/04
If he wants to "edit" The Pantagraph, he should apply for a copy-editing job and not simply show made-over and "falsely represented" pages from the newspaper in his movie -- or he should at least ask for permission first.
In a moment early in the movie, newspaper headlines from around America that relate to the legally contested 2000 presidential election flash across the screen. One of them is purported to be from a Dec. 19, 2001, edition of The Pantagraph.
But a check of that day's newspaper revealed the large headline prominently flashed in the movie -- "Latest Florida recount shows Gore won election" -- never appeared in that edition.
Instead, the headline appeared in a Dec. 5, 2001, edition -- but not as a news headline. It was in much smaller type above a letter to the editor. Those headlines reflect only the opinions of the letter writer and are not considered "factual" news stories.
In the movie, The Pantagraph page, as shown, was not how a real page from the newspaper would have looked. Moore's version had a different typeface and a different headline size from what The Pantagraph uses. The newspaper's name, however, appears in the correct font.
Interesting... in the whole country Moore couldn't find a paper that believed that Gore's supposed "stolen win" was big enough news to make it to the front page? And this was about an issue that made front pages all over the world for months. So Moore had to fake a newspaper headline and couldn't even be bothered to do a good job duplicating the font and size of headlines that The Pantagraph uses?
Did he expect that by using a small city's paper, people were less likely to check?
The thing is, I grew up in Bloomington, IL and I read (and delivered) The Pantagraph. It's not the best paper in the world, but at least they have some standards. Maybe next time Moore wants to make up headlines he should use a paper that makes up it's own headlines... like the New York Times?
I don't like Michael Moore. This has little to do with his politics. It's mostly because he doesn't seem to know when it's time to shut the hell up. Free Speech gives you the right to say whatever the hell you want; right or wrong, fact or fiction. But as an adult memeber of society you should know that there are times when certain subjects are appropriate and times when they are not. Conversations that are perfectly acceptable in a bar, can (rightly) get you fired at work. Discussions with your spouse in your living room may be completely unacceptable in a public park. This has nothing to do with Free Speech. It has to do with common courtesy. Michael Moore clearly hasn't learned where that line falls, and until he does, none of my money will be given to him. In other words, my decision not to see Farenheit 9/11 has less to do with Farenheit 9/11 but more with Moore's Oscar speech and his (clearly) lax definition of "documentary".
Leave a Comment
Before leaving a comment, please ensure you have read and understand my comments policy and my privacy policy. Any comment that does not abide by the comment policy will be deleted immediately.