The Hoboken Tax Reform Coalition
The Cartel - Before you pay to see this film - know what your ticket dollars will be supporting
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by David on -
I sat through 'Inconvenient Truth' and 'Fahrenheit 911' I thought they both had a points and their POV was obvious. Obviously The Cartel has a POV too, not a reason to skip seeing it.
The evidence that the current teaching system is broken is at least as strong as the case for global warming, it might be worth trying to understand. It kind of worries me the NJEA is trying to discredit the messenger rather than addressing the message...
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Permalink Reply by Jack Dawkins on
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Yes, Inconvenient Truth & Fahrenheit 911 both had a point of view....the difference between those films and The Cartel is that I've never heard/read anything in connection with the film The Cartel that has been honest about the extreme right-wing viewpoint of the producers or the filmmaker. Has Bob Bowdon shared his right wing, pro-voucher personal views in connection with any of his self promotions? Hidden agendas are repugnant....
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Permalink Reply by Lane B. on -
The NJEA's charges are false and have been refuted. Bob is not a member here, so I'll add this info for him:
Bowdon said that the NJEA completely invented the fact that the film had had any financial support before it was completely finished, his partnerships and financial support were all post production. Rather than addressing any of the film's substantive arguments, they focused instead on ad hominem personal attacks against Bowdon. He also said, "It's more than a little ironic that the NJEA criticized me for lack of transparency through an anonymous author."
-- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cartel
I recommend you see The Cartel and decide for yourself.
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Permalink Reply by Jack Dawkins on
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tsk, tsk - saying something is a "false charge" doesn't mean the content of the artical is false. Don't take my word for it - go to the MPI website where they list The Cartel as one of their films: http://www.thempi.org/cgi-local/films.cgi
Oh, and by the way, even if their involvement is only post-production and distribution, why would someone that did not subscribe to their right-wing agenda take any money from them or allow them to distribute their film?
Lastly, what EXACTLY are the so-called personal attacks on Bob Bowdon in the NJEA article?
Lane B. said:The NJEA's charges are false and have been refuted. Bob is not a member here, so I'll add this info for him:
Bowdon said that the NJEA completely invented the fact that the film had had any financial support before it was completely finished, his partnerships and financial support were all post production. Rather than addressing any of the film's substantive arguments, they focused instead on ad hominem personal attacks against Bowdon. He also said, "It's more than a little ironic that the NJEA criticized me for lack of transparency through an anonymous author."
-- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cartel
I recommend you see The Cartel and decide for yourself.
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Permalink Reply by Lane B. on
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Jack, people believed to be members of the union attacked Bob anonymously on NJ.com blogs long before the press release you cited was put out. I believe that's what Bob was referring to. Again, he doesn't have a login here so I am just relaying information from him for the benefit of the discussion. I note that Theresa Minutillo is in the movie, and I don't think you would call her a right-winger. There are also many inner-city Newark educators, advocates, parents and students featured in the film. Bob writes:
The occasion of the national release of The Cartel has given me an opportunity to respond in writing to the NJEA's now famous attack on me, posted on their website in 2009.
First, I'd like to respond to the questions they raise about the content in The Cartel movie -- except there simply aren't any. Their examples of an incorrect facts, statistics or dollar values? None offered. Their references to quotes taken out of context? Not a one. Do they refer to anything at all about... well... anything in the movie? No.
So its pretty telling, as a starting point, that the NJEA attack on the movie contains no reference to anything in the movie. Interesting, isn't it? Instead, the entire document is merely an ad hominem personal attack on me. That's where we begin.
Now let's get to those attacks. They suggest that I'm not a real journalist because I've taken periodic freelance work with the Onion News Network, a satirical news site that parodies traditional journalism. (It only shows how out of touch they are... to an increasingly number of people my Onion work only makes me more credible, not less. I guess by their standard The Daily Show never makes substantive points either, right?) Funny how they deliberately left out any references to my actual full-time journalism jobs, like six years at Bloomberg Television from 2000-2006.
Then, their main tack is that I can't be trusted because the "driving force" behind The Cartel was a number of secret, dark, underworld, ultra-right-wing groups who hired me to do their villainous, evil bidding. "Better not even waste your time watching this movie," they imply.
Let me make something absolutely clear: they made this up -- invented out of whole cloth to try to get people to dismiss my movie, rather than deal with its substance.
I created this entire movie, let me repeat, entire movie funded only by my personal savings. And I can prove it too. If anyone wants to hire an independent forensic accountant, I'll throw open my books. If you want to interview the friends of mine that I talked into going on shoots with me for no pay, I'll provide the introductions. Or let's turn it around if they can produce any evidence from anyone, anywhere, backing up their claim -- let's see it.
Only after the movie was completely made, and had publicly screened and won a film festival award, did I receive post-production and distribution funding from a variety of groups, none of whom are the least bit evil anyway -- they're simply Libertarian foundations who believe in competition and capitalism. Last time I checked, capitalism isn't evil. In fact, the capitalist system has provided the United States with the highest standard of living in the world. (And if the NJEA believes capitalism is indeed evil, perhaps they should just say so explicitly, instead of through innuendo.)
The real story is that because they saw the logos of these organizations on our website, they decided to create an absolute fiction that those groups were the "driving force" of my film, and the film's arguments should therefore be dismissed entirely out-of-hand.
They also claim that the interview with Joyce Powell was set up under false pretenses -- another fiction. We simply said we were doing a documentary about New Jersey public schools and provided a list of topics that would be discussed. This was 100% true, and in fact, all those topics given were indeed discussed -- I have the tape & can prove it. We didn't say or promise a single thing that wasn't true.
And how's this for irony? We were criticized for a lack of transparency by the NJEA via an anonymous author! "Mr. Anonymous" says I'm not transparent. Uh oh.
What's the big picture? The movie isn't even about me. When you hear a state assemblyman say a billion dollars disappeared in the NJ School Construction Corporation, it isn't about me. When you see a new $30 billion football field that was built at a school where 85% of the kids aren't academically proficient, it isn't about me. When you hear a NJ State Commission of Investigation officer explain that a NJ superintendent received compensation of $470,000 in one year -- the same year he was fired, it isn't about me.
And when a Hoboken School Board President says the district paid some of its janitors six figures, it's not about me either.
The NJEA just desperately doesn't want people to see this movie. They're also understandably embarrassed by the preposterous interview given at the time by their president. And since they couldn't find a false fact or misleading edit in the film itself -- they decided the best approach was to trash me personally, and invent nefarious, spooky funding trails that are supposed to invalidate the whole film -- so its substance can be ignored.
Have I resorted to personal attacks against them in return, no? (Although it's hard to personally trash "Mr. Anonymous.") The fact is our side doesn't need to lower ourselves to the ad hominem level, as they have done. We can just stick with discussing NJEA policies. You know why?
We're winning.
You want the truth, Mr. Anonymous? I'll tell you the truth. The "driving force" behind The Cartel movie wasn't any outside group. And it wasn't even me. It's the little girl shown weeping after she didn't win the charter school lottery to escape Newark district schools. And it's the hundreds of thousands of parents and children in this state who don't have the good fortune of attending one of the many good NJ public schools, but are instead stuck in a chronically failing dropout factory with no other option.
I suggest you think about them more, and your pay raises less.
Bob Bowdon
Director, The Cartel
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Permalink Reply by Jack Dawkins on
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Interesting response. Thank you for posting this, Lane B.
My response:
In his opening paragraphs Bob complains that they did not critique the film. That’s right, – it’s not a review of the film, it’s an informational piece intended to provide some insight into the perspective of the filmmaker, funding sources and the distributer. That’s called full disclosure and I’m glad that this information was made available.
Bob states: “Instead, the entire document is merely an ad hominem personal attack on me. That's where we begin….. They suggest that I'm not a real journalist because I've taken periodic freelance work with the Onion News Network, a satirical news site that parodies traditional journalism. (It only shows how out of touch they are... to an increasingly number of people my Onion work only makes me more credible, not less. I guess by their standard The Daily Show never makes substantive points either, right?) Funny how they deliberately left out any references to my actual full-time journalism jobs, like six years at Bloomberg Television from 2000-2006.”
Actually, here is what the article says is:
“Filmmaker Bob Bowdon is a former Bloomberg anchor and reporter who now appears as a fictitious correspondent on the made-up Onion News Network: his resume describes his work as a “reporter of comedic, fake news” for Onion. His past work has included producing and anchoring duties on Regional News Network and a local cable station, and a small production scouting job for a 1991 movie “Hangin’ with the Homeboys.”
Looks like the VERY FIRST THING THAT THEY SAY is that “Bob is a former Bloomberg anchor and reporter.” And, I don’t see them ‘suggesting anything’ – is Bob trying to misrepresent the article? They simply state that he is currently a fictitious correspondent on the made-up Onion News Network. They state it; they do not add any commentary.
Bob goes on to say: “ Then, their main tack is that I can't be trusted because the "driving force" behind The Cartel was a number of secret, dark, underworld, ultra-right-wing groups who hired me to do their villainous, evil bidding. "Better not even waste your time watching this movie," they imply.
Touchy touchy touchy, – they simply state that The Cartel (and I quote) is: is a project of Moving Picture Institute, a nonprofit that the Reason Foundation describes as “the AV department for the vast libertarian conspiracy.”1 The group funds, produces or promotes independent films that are devoted to “protecting and sustaining a free society.”
Since MPI lists the film as one of their projects, this is an accurate statement as is the quote about “protecting and sustaining a free society”
Bob goes on to say: “Let me make something absolutely clear: they made this up -- invented out of whole cloth to try to get people to dismiss my movie, rather than deal with its substance.”
I wish I could ask Bob what exactly is it that they make up? The film is, by MPI’s own account, one of their projects? If it’s not, why isn’t Bob suing them?
In the next section, Bob veers away from facts and inserts his own opinions
…..did I receive post-production and distribution funding from a variety of groups, none of whom are the least bit evil anyway -- they're simply Libertarian foundations who believe in competition and capitalism. Last time I checked, capitalism isn't evil. In fact, the capitalist system has provided the United States with the highest standard of living in the world. (And if the NJEA believes capitalism is indeed evil, perhaps they should just say so explicitly, instead of through innuendo.)
Now, NJEA does not say that Libertarian foundations are evil, do they? Nor do they provide any personal commentary on capitalism.
Bob continues: “The real story is that because they saw the logos of these organizations on our website, they decided to create an absolute fiction that those groups were the "driving force" of my film, and the film's arguments should therefore be dismissed entirely out-of-hand.”
Well, the logos are on the Cartel website – that must mean something….However, the article does not suggest that Bob should be dismissed out-of-hand – it provides information on MPI, copied directly from the MPI website and background information on the board of directors of MPI with footnotes.
Bob goes on to say:
“The NJEA just desperately doesn't want people to see this movie. They're also understandably embarrassed by the preposterous interview given at the time by their president. And since they couldn't find a false fact or misleading edit in the film itself -- they decided the best approach was to trash me personally, and invent nefarious, spooky funding trails that are supposed to invalidate the whole film -- so its substance can be ignored.”
Bob needs to be careful when subscribing motivations to others. Perhaps NJEA doesn’t want people to see the film; perhaps they do; perhaps, they don’t care either way. What the article is doing is informing the public to which organization (MPI) this film is affiliated. Is that such a horrible bad thing? Heck, we all know where Michael Moore stands on issues. That has to be taken into account when viewing his films – shouldn’t the same hold true for Bob Bowden or would he rather his personal views and/or agenda be hidden? Isn’t it more honest to the viewing public to know that Bob supports charters, vouchers and libertarian free market capitalism? Since, I’m sure, he stands behind his own research/product – why would he be angry about the affiliation with MPI being exposed? He is not a neutral party. MPI is not a neutral film production company. If the piece is propaganda piece (in the same way that some would classify Fahrenheit 911 as propaganda) that information belongs on the table.
By the way, I was planning on seeing the film, along with a friend of mine. Now, I feel that those entrance fees would have been used to fund MPI propaganda projects and had this article not surfaced I would have never known.
Lane B. said:Jack, people believed to be members of the union attacked Bob anonymously on NJ.com blogs long before the press release you cited was put out. I believe that's what Bob was referring to. Again, he doesn't have a login here so I am just relaying information from him for the benefit of the discussion. I note that Theresa Minutillo is in the movie, and I don't think you would call her a right-winger. There are also many inner-city Newark educators, advocates, parents and students featured in the film. Bob writes:
The occasion of the national release of The Cartel has given me an opportunity to respond in writing to the NJEA's now famous attack on me, posted on their website in 2009.
First, I'd like to respond to the questions they raise about the content in The Cartel movie -- except there simply aren't any. Their examples of an incorrect facts, statistics or dollar values? None offered. Their references to quotes taken out of context? Not a one. Do they refer to anything at all about... well... anything in the movie? No.
So its pretty telling, as a starting point, that the NJEA attack on the movie contains no reference to anything in the movie. Interesting, isn't it? Instead, the entire document is merely an ad hominem personal attack on me. That's where we begin.
Now let's get to those attacks. They suggest that I'm not a real journalist because I've taken periodic freelance work with the Onion News Network, a satirical news site that parodies traditional journalism. (It only shows how out of touch they are... to an increasingly number of people my Onion work only makes me more credible, not less. I guess by their standard The Daily Show never makes substantive points either, right?) Funny how they deliberately left out any references to my actual full-time journalism jobs, like six years at Bloomberg Television from 2000-2006.
Then, their main tack is that I can't be trusted because the "driving force" behind The Cartel was a number of secret, dark, underworld, ultra-right-wing groups who hired me to do their villainous, evil bidding. "Better not even waste your time watching this movie," they imply.
Let me make something absolutely clear: they made this up -- invented out of whole cloth to try to get people to dismiss my movie, rather than deal with its substance.
I created this entire movie, let me repeat, entire movie funded only by my personal savings. And I can prove it too. If anyone wants to hire an independent forensic accountant, I'll throw open my books. If you want to interview the friends of mine that I talked into going on shoots with me for no pay, I'll provide the introductions. Or let's turn it around if they can produce any evidence from anyone, anywhere, backing up their claim -- let's see it.
Only after the movie was completely made, and had publicly screened and won a film festival award, did I receive post-production and distribution funding from a variety of groups, none of whom are the least bit evil anyway -- they're simply Libertarian foundations who believe in competition and capitalism. Last time I checked, capitalism isn't evil. In fact, the capitalist system has provided the United States with the highest standard of living in the world. (And if the NJEA believes capitalism is indeed evil, perhaps they should just say so explicitly, instead of through innuendo.)
The real story is that because they saw the logos of these organizations on our website, they decided to create an absolute fiction that those groups were the "driving force" of my film, and the film's arguments should therefore be dismissed entirely out-of-hand.
They also claim that the interview with Joyce Powell was set up under false pretenses -- another fiction. We simply said we were doing a documentary about New Jersey public schools and provided a list of topics that would be discussed. This was 100% true, and in fact, all those topics given were indeed discussed -- I have the tape & can prove it. We didn't say or promise a single thing that wasn't true.
And how's this for irony? We were criticized for a lack of transparency by the NJEA via an anonymous author! "Mr. Anonymous" says I'm not transparent. Uh oh.
What's the big picture? The movie isn't even about me. When you hear a state assemblyman say a billion dollars disappeared in the NJ School Construction Corporation, it isn't about me. When you see a new $30 billion football field that was built at a school where 85% of the kids aren't academically proficient, it isn't about me. When you hear a NJ State Commission of Investigation officer explain that a NJ superintendent received compensation of $470,000 in one year -- the same year he was fired, it isn't about me.
And when a Hoboken School Board President says the district paid some of its janitors six figures, it's not about me either.
The NJEA just desperately doesn't want people to see this movie. They're also understandably embarrassed by the preposterous interview given at the time by their president. And since they couldn't find a false fact or misleading edit in the film itself -- they decided the best approach was to trash me personally, and invent nefarious, spooky funding trails that are supposed to invalidate the whole film -- so its substance can be ignored.
Have I resorted to personal attacks against them in return, no? (Although it's hard to personally trash "Mr. Anonymous.") The fact is our side doesn't need to lower ourselves to the ad hominem level, as they have done. We can just stick with discussing NJEA policies. You know why?
We're winning.
You want the truth, Mr. Anonymous? I'll tell you the truth. The "driving force" behind The Cartel movie wasn't any outside group. And it wasn't even me. It's the little girl shown weeping after she didn't win the charter school lottery to escape Newark district schools. And it's the hundreds of thousands of parents and children in this state who don't have the good fortune of attending one of the many good NJ public schools, but are instead stuck in a chronically failing dropout factory with no other option.
I suggest you think about them more, and your pay raises less.
Bob Bowdon
Director, The Cartel
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