election effect of 'Fahrenheit' - not changing minds - but bolstered Dems [View All]

[papau]

http://www.calendarlive.com/cl-et-horn23jul23,1,5670067.story

THE TIMES POLL
Public keeping its cool over election effect of 'Fahrenheit'
By John Horn
Times Staff Writer

Jul 23 2004

Despite its continuing success with the box-office electorate, "Fahrenheit 9/11," Michael Moore's sharply satirical attack on President Bush and his administration, appears to be wielding less influence among potential voters than the filmmaker and his supporters might have hoped, a Los Angeles Times Poll has found.<snip>

Of the 1,529 registered voters surveyed in the poll, conducted nationwide July 17-21, 9% had seen Moore's film, which has taken in more than $97 million since it opened last month and established itself as the highest-grossing feature-length documentary ever. Of those who have seen the movie, 78% identified themselves as Democrats, 9% as independents and 6% as Republicans.

Predictably, the vast majority of those who had seen the film — 92% — said they were planning to vote for Sen. John F. Kerry and Sen. John Edwards for president. Only 3% planned to vote for Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney.

Seventy-nine percent of those who had seen "Fahrenheit" said the film would not change their November votes; 18% said it made them more likely to vote against Bush; and 3% said it bolstered their resolve to vote for him.<snip>

Overall, the Times Poll found that audience members had mixed feelings about the accuracy of Moore's brand of documentary filmmaking. Nine percent found it "somewhat" or "completely" inaccurate. But despite attacks from conservative critics, most others granted it at least some credibility, with 31% calling it "completely accurate" and 58% calling it "somewhat accurate." The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.<snip>