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Merchants of Doubt
By Jeffrey Anderson,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Docu raises important questions about media reliability.
A Lot or a Little?
What you will—and won't—find in this movie.
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Merchants of Doubt
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Based on 1 parent review
Merchants of doubt are dooming the human species to extinction
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What's the Story?
Based on a book by Naomi Oreskes and Erik Conway, the documentary MERCHANTS OF DOUBT begins by looking at big tobacco companies, which, unable to flat-out lie about the dangers of their products, learned techniques of casting doubt. An entire industry -- flame retardants for furniture -- sprung up based on their misinformation. Decades later, the movie argues, these same tactics are being used to combat climate scientists who assert that greenhouse gasses are destroying the planet. Big businesses and right-wing conservatives risk big profit losses and other changes if they agree, so they follow in the tobacco industry's footsteps, using similar tactics to deflect attention away from the core issue. Magician Jamy Ian Swiss also turns up, explaining similarities to the psychological techniques of magic tricks.
Is It Any Good?
Directed by Robert Kenner, of the excellent documentary Food, Inc., MERCHANTS OF DOUBT feels a little scattershot. It's as if it's unsure whether to stay focused on the topic of misdirection or dive directly into the immediate and pressing issue of climate change. When it is on topic, it's quite educational, illustrating just how people are hired for the purpose of misrepresenting data (or presenting false data) and how they cast doubt.
Kenner somehow scored fascinating interviews with some of these "fakers," who usually wouldn't agree to appear in a movie like this. Meanwhile, the featured scientists are less charismatic, if more straightforward in their interviews. (Many are shocked and saddened by this whole phenomenon.) And, as the topic moves over to climate change, the movie becomes more emotional and less analytical. But on the whole, it has a great deal of important information presented in a lively way, and it has the power to get you riled up.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the ways in which the media conveys information. Have you ever been convinced by information that turned out to not be entirely true? How can you tell what's true and what isn't?
Does Merchants of Doubt make you believe that the climate crisis exists? Doesn't exist? What information is given on the subject?
Is it easier to understand the media representation of the climate crisis in perspective to the media representation of tobacco? The perception of tobacco has changed a lot over the years. Is it possible that the perception of the climate crisis will, too?
What's the difference between lying and casting doubt, or deflecting attention?
Movie Details
- In theaters: March 6, 2015
- On DVD or streaming: July 7, 2015
- Director: Robert Kenner
- Studio: Sony Pictures Classics
- Genre: Documentary
- Run time: 96 minutes
- MPAA rating: PG-13
- MPAA explanation: brief strong language
- Last updated: April 4, 2023
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