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Fahrenheit 9/11

With Fahrenheit 9/11, Michael Moore has set out an ambitious goal for himself: regime change (Al-Arian). Nobody can say that Moore doesn't warn the viewer what his goals are, however. Fahrenheit 9/11 has generated a storm of publicity on its way to shattering box office records. Lauded by the left and pilloried by the right, its ability to generate visceral reactions in its viewers is the key to its staying power and popularity. Billed as a must-see by both its proponents and its opponents, the movie, and Moore's cagey promotion of it, has disseminated its message of rage against the Bush administration far wider than anybody could have predicted. I believe that the movie's popularity is directly related to its ability to manipulate the emotions of its audience. The movie uses established propaganda tactics to manipulate the viewer, fomenting gut-level reactions to its themes and thereby spreading its message. This efficient use of sophisticated information management techniques to disseminate a message is in stark contrast to the movie's haphazard, shoe-string budget feel. This contrast is remarkably effective at concealing the at times blatant manipulation that is occurring. In short, Fahrenheit 9/11 is a brilliantly executed piece of propaganda that wastes no opportunity to influence the emotions of its viewers.

Before we can analyze Fahrenheit 9/11 it is important to understand what propaganda is. Propaganda is a difficult word to define because it has acquired a thoroughly negative connotation in our society. People generally think of propaganda as the mass-media manipulation of viewers' emotions and prejudices combined with a willingness to deceive in order to gain power (Rhoads, 1). What is confusing, however, is that people often refer to things they disagree with as propaganda, and things they agree with as informative or educative. And in fact, propaganda is similar in some ways to education, in that both at...

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Fahrenheit 9/11. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 15:46, March 28, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1698205.html