Michael Moore: 'Newspapers Slit Their Own Throats, Good Riddance'

Movies about newspapers never do well.
-- "The Paper," "His Girl Friday" and "All the President's Men"

 

I think if someone other than Moore said this (minus the politicizing) many here would agree. Profitable papers have gutted staff in this downturn to tithe their corporate masters. Blame it on revenues or the economy or Craig's List, but it comes down to getting the profit out despite the downturn, not trying to weather the storm.

 

This is too easy. Allow me, Mr. Moore, to respond:

"It’s not the Internet that has killed newspapers, the gadfly documentarian said in a four-minute detour from talking about his film, which rejects capitalism as “undemocratic.” Instead, he said, it’s corporate greed. “These newspapers have slit their own throats,” he said. “Good riddance.”

Funny, considering how many times newspapers have carried your water and given you and your films an awful lot of positive ink. If you believe the internet did not affect newspapers, I would only point to your lack of experience and knowledge of the industry.

"Moore said that newspapers, bought up by corporations in the last generation, have pursued profits at the expense of news gathering. By basing their businesses on advertising over circulation, newspaper owners have neglected their true economic base and core constituency, he said."

Newspapers haven't made the bulk of their revenue in circulation since Hearst was king.

"He also accused those corporations of supporting Republican candidates, which have discouraged reading and education in measures such as supporting the elimination of the Education Department at the federal level."

Oh really ... a newspaper endorsing a Republican somehow discouraged people from reading?

"And Moore cited newspapers like those in Baltimore or Detroit, his home town, with firing reporters that cover subjects that affect the community. Ultimately, he said, this was self-defeating. It would be like GM deciding to discourage people from learning how to drive, he said. “It’s their own greed, their own stupidity,” he said. “It’s capitalism that taken (newspapers) from us.”

The only true statement he made.

"Moore said he tried to include the subject in his new film, but it became too large a topic and instead he may make an entire film about the fall of newspapers. “One year or two years from now,” he predicted, “we are not going to have daily newspapers.”

One or two years from there there will still be newspapers ... and you'll still be fat and stupid.

 

I agree with some of his points, but I don't want him making a movie and shitting all over newspapers. There's no telling what twists and turns he'd take with it. There are too many people that believe every single word he says, and I'm tired of listening to them.

 

I watched the video, and think he's such a dumbass. If he thinks everyone is so fucking stupid, why does he think they'll understand his self-righteousness? Throughout the whole video, I just kept thinking, "Th, th, tha, that's my stapler."

 

Glad someone brought this up. I know it's a huge revelation to most of us on this site.

And yeah, in a couple years, Moore will still be lounging about in his expensive Grand Traverse Bay home, snacking on ho-hos and reading the Record-Eagle.

I've enjoyed some of his movies over the years, but (surprise!) the man doesn't have all the answers.

 

Advertising making more is no surprise to me. I used to work for a free magazine. Obviously, the only money made was through advertising, and it has been that way since it started in the 70s.

 

Circulation and single-copy sales, in essence, pay for shipping and handling. That's why free newspapers aren't immediately consigned to oblivion. It's also why "make people pay for online content and all our troubles will be far away" is a non-starter, because if you were really paying for content, you'd triple the price of your print product. The product has been given away since before Al Gore invented the computer and pants.

 

From Craig Ferguson's Sept. 7 Late Late Show monologue: "The guests at the Venice film festival include Michael Moore and Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez. That was the guy who called George Bush 'El Diablo.' People are saying the festival shouldn't have invited that America-hating lunatic, or Hugo Chavez."

 

I'm a proud Democrat, and no fan of Michael Moore. He may have some valid points about corporate greed and the impact on it has newsgathering, but he's still a pompous ass.

I actually watched "Manufacturing Dissent," a documentary on Moore, last night, and it wasn't done by some conservatives out to get him. Moore has a knack for twisting, ignoring, changing and downright falsifying information to make an intended point.

So I can't take anything that guy says seriously when it comes to credibility in the news or how one goes about gathering, and reporting to the news.

By his standards, we could just make it up.

 

All Michael Moore would be good for is ditching the glasses, cutting his hair short, putting on a headset and playing the role of Charlie Weis in the Oliver Stone movie Pluck of the Irish.

 

Why is it that his attitude about GM wasn't "automobile manufacturers slit their own throats, good riddance"??