Hurry! There's Still Time to See Moore's Film!

It is astounding the lengths the Seattle Times has gone to keep Michael Moore's film, "Fahrenheit 9/11", in the headlines. Besides numerous pieces on the film itself, it is frequently referenced in political news story's. The one that really sticks out in my mind is a story from a couple weeks back about Dick Cheney's strengths and weaknesses from the standpoint of the upcoming election. In that piece, those Saudi flights that occurred just after 9/11 were brought up. What was so infuriating was that the Times referenced Moore's film, as though it were a credible news source, in relation to the flights. If there's one thing Moore's film is not, it's a credible news source.

But several weeks have now passed and it appears the Times is trying to keep the Fahrenheit 9/11 "buzz" alive. On page A5 of today's paper, we have the story, "Moore Film's Success Stirs GOP Unease". This is nothing more than an advertisement for the film, pure and simple.

It's a total fluff piece; there is absolutely nothing newsworthy as far as I can tell. Apparently, we Republicans are terrified of the film and the effect it will have on the upcoming elections in November. This is about the time it's due to comes out on video. Some polls are cited and the data shows that everyone and their dog "plans" on seeing the film eventually. And then there are quotes from moviegoers like, "Moore forces you to think about the role of oil in the politics of American life", blah, blah, blah.

Of course, what's missing from the piece is even a cursory discussion of the accuracy and truthfulness of the film's assertions. The ONLY hint of a reference to the truthfulness of the film comes in a quote from a women who says, "I guess that I think it makes me want to pursue how much of it is accurate....[but] I don't hear Bush and (Vice President Dick) Cheney saying that this is incorrect." Well then, it must all be true.

Bottom line, this is an extremely biased piece as there are only positive references to the film (unless you count the above quote as skepticism). If the Times was really fair and balanced, as it claims to be, there would be a least some mention of the proven falsehoods the film contains. The love affair the Seattle Times has with this movie is utterly transparent.