BLOG #4

          The movie Waiting for Superman takes time to persuade viewers that the current public school education system is not satisfactory and that enrolling our students in charter schools will fix this detrimental problem. Another documentary our class viewed was Food, Inc. Food, Inc. is a documentary focusing on persuading consumers around the world that we are misinformed on where our meat actually comes from. Both documentaries heavily use ethos, logos, and pathos to grab their audiences attention to these problems.

          With the use of pathos, Waiting for Superman follows the life of several minority, public school students portraying their daily struggles. Personally interviewing these students makes the audience really feel for how bad of an education they are receiving. Food, Inc. uses the same approach by interviewing a mother of a young boy who lost his life because of ecoli poisoning, after consuming a hamburger at Jack and the Box on a family vacation. Visually seeing a mother cry over the lose of her soon captivates the audience emotionally to want to fix the problem. As well as interviewing the mother, Food, Inc. takes the time to interview different farmers trapped in our meat system. Seeing how farmers have to treat chickens and other farm animals so cruelly, the audience then is appealed emotionally to the problem.

          Using ethos through out both documentaries makes them more credible. Waiting for Superman has the Bush Administration, a Charter school owner, and Michelle Rhee that helps the audience feel more comfortable about who is trying to fix the problem. While in Food, Inc. the writer, Eric Scholsser is also the writer in Fast Food Nation- another documentary about the food industry. Because we know that Eric Scholsser is credible, people are more willing to believe and take action with this problem. Visually, Eric Scholsser also appears frequently in the film which helps to build a relationship between viewer and author.

          Logos is also present in both documentaries. In Waiting for Superman, a memorable info-graphic on math proficiency is used to further explain the dis-progression the US is facing. Visually showing the United States being broken down by percentages of students, makes the problem seem a lot worse than it would sound through words. In Food, Inc. mentions dangers in the food we consume and  political problems with regulations, but also uses a visual info-graphic to express to viewers on a cartoon cow and pig how few meat companies have taken over the market over time. Again, using an info-graphic to get a point across is visually appealing to the audience and makes the want to fix the problem.

          Overall, the use of visual appeals in both documentaries, like interviews, author being present, and info-graphics helps to make the audience more involved and more willing to fix the problem.