Analyzing Morgan Spurlock's Film 'Super Size That Publicity'
Comm 353
Essay #1
29 February 2013
Super Size that Publicity
In 2004, Morgan Spurlock released his documentary “Super Size Me.” In this documentary, Spurlock takes it upon himself to eat only from the fast food restaurant McDonald’s for one month straight. He gave himself four rules:
1. All of his food must come from McDonald’s
2. He must try everything on the McDonald’s menu at least once
3. If asked, he must agree to “super-size” each food order
4. He must eat three meals a day Before he started his experiment, Spurlock was “certified in good health by three doctors and a nutritionist; by the end, he suffered from headaches, lack of energy, elevated levels of cholesterol and a 25-pound weight gain” (McGary, 2). As you can imagine, this was not positive press for McDonald’s. The movie gained huge popularity when it was nominated for an Oscar, and even grossed more than $25 million around the world (which is a lot, considering it was produced on a budget around $55,000) (McGary, 1). Now, people all over the world are blaming McDonald’s for our growing obesity epidemic. So how did McDonald’s deal with this? Not only did they have to deal with the fact that over 61% of Americans were obese in 2005 (McGarry 1), but now …show more content…
Of course it’s bad to eat greasy fast food all day every day for a whole month; most people don’t need any doctors to tell them that. Morgan Spurlock’s health issues he experienced came from eating McDonald’s three times a day, every day, for one month. In a poll from the Pew Research Center, 44% of Americans eat fast food once a week, while only 6% eat fast food seven times per week (Fast Food Statistics). While 6% is a substantial amount, it’s nowhere near the majority. McDonald’s could have easily stuck with this defense, and this defense alone, but they chose to go beyond the call of duty by implementing the Go Active! Happy Meal and various other menu and policy
Essay #1
29 February 2013
Super Size that Publicity
In 2004, Morgan Spurlock released his documentary “Super Size Me.” In this documentary, Spurlock takes it upon himself to eat only from the fast food restaurant McDonald’s for one month straight. He gave himself four rules:
1. All of his food must come from McDonald’s
2. He must try everything on the McDonald’s menu at least once
3. If asked, he must agree to “super-size” each food order
4. He must eat three meals a day Before he started his experiment, Spurlock was “certified in good health by three doctors and a nutritionist; by the end, he suffered from headaches, lack of energy, elevated levels of cholesterol and a 25-pound weight gain” (McGary, 2). As you can imagine, this was not positive press for McDonald’s. The movie gained huge popularity when it was nominated for an Oscar, and even grossed more than $25 million around the world (which is a lot, considering it was produced on a budget around $55,000) (McGary, 1). Now, people all over the world are blaming McDonald’s for our growing obesity epidemic. So how did McDonald’s deal with this? Not only did they have to deal with the fact that over 61% of Americans were obese in 2005 (McGarry 1), but now …show more content…
Of course it’s bad to eat greasy fast food all day every day for a whole month; most people don’t need any doctors to tell them that. Morgan Spurlock’s health issues he experienced came from eating McDonald’s three times a day, every day, for one month. In a poll from the Pew Research Center, 44% of Americans eat fast food once a week, while only 6% eat fast food seven times per week (Fast Food Statistics). While 6% is a substantial amount, it’s nowhere near the majority. McDonald’s could have easily stuck with this defense, and this defense alone, but they chose to go beyond the call of duty by implementing the Go Active! Happy Meal and various other menu and policy