A Little TOO ‘Inconvenient’?

Al Gore accepted the oscar during the Academy Awards with a speech that reiterates something he says in his documentary ‘An Inconvenient Truth’: “This is not a political issue, but a moral issue.”

Al Gore has certainly hit the spot light with his crusade to enlighten people about the looming danger of global warming. But not everyone is jumping on the green bandwagon and going out to buy solar panels, hybrid cars, and plant trees as a result of his movie.

The Christian Science Monitor calls ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ a ‘Docuganda’. From the Urban Dictionary:

"A film that uses documentary style to spread propaganda. Usually, docuganda will set out a premise and then attack any skeptics, rather than actually attempt to prove the case. The effect is that you either agree with the premise or you look like a fool. The word was specifically coined to refer to UFO "documentaries," ; such as "In Search Of," which provide anecdotal evidence for a phenomenon, draw a conclusion based on that evidence, and then attack any possible competing conclusions."

But you may argue, is that so wrong? So what if Al Gore’s documentary is one-sided? Sometimes, in order to correct social behaviour, you need to over-emphasize to get people to take action. It certainly seems to be working judging by the cultural influences it is having in North America.

How did ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ (AIT) affect you? Do you accept what it is telling you? Or is there more to the story? What should you believe?

Post on your blog:

1. How did you feel after seeing AIT?
2. Find 2 references that support AIT, and explain how they do (provide links).
3. Find 2 reference that criticize AIT, and explain why they do (provide links).
4. Do you think AIT is a docuganda?