‘Sicko’ Made Impact on Public Opinion Even Though Few People Saw Film, According to Op-Ed

Films like Michael Moore's documentary "Sicko" demonstrate that despite "small numbers of people shelling out hard-earned dollars" to see an "advocacy-oriented documentary," the "true power lies in the attention generated by the buzz," Matt James and Mollyann Brodie of the Kaiser Family Foundation write in a Sacramento Bee opinion piece. The authors cite a recent Kaiser Family Foundation poll finding that while "only 4% of adult Americans report having seen the movie," 46% of U.S. residents say they are familiar with the film and "significant numbers of that group say they had a discussion with a friend or family member about the U.S. health care system as a result of the movie." James is senior vice president, Media and Public Education at Kaiser and Brodie is vice president and director of Public Opinion and Media Research.

The authors write, "Moore's film represents an interesting development on the public policy front, in which a documentary film (or advocacy-oriented documentary), free media coverage, public relations, marketing and 24-hour cable channels all work together to help place an issue on the public policy agenda." Citing a similar impact from Al Gore's environment-focused documentary "An Inconvenient Truth," James and Brodie write, "Call it the rise of the 'Advomentary.'"

"Now, before fans of 'An Inconvenient Truth' and 'Sicko' start popping champagne corks, some perspective," James and Brodie write, adding, "No significant environmental legislation has passed the Congress as a result of 'An Inconvenient Truth.' And when it comes to health reform, Americans often express the desire for change, only to balk when presented with alternatives to our current system."

However, James and Brodie continue that the "power of advomentaries is now apparent," and the lesson of such "advomentaries" is that if "a compelling film is made, backed by smart political operatives helping to drive the message and the media do their part to amplify it, then a movie can help drive an issue to the top tier of the public policy agenda." They conclude, "And in true American fashion, you don't even need to have seen the movie to form your opinion" (James/Brodie, Sacramento Bee, 9/4).