Better Worlds Theory

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Better Worlds Theory
Better Worlds Theory
On Manipulative Astonishment
Monday Media Review

On Manipulative Astonishment

The Grab offers more lessons in journalism than it probably intended

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M L Clark
Aug 12, 2024
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Better Worlds Theory
Better Worlds Theory
On Manipulative Astonishment
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Three investigative journalists confer over a whiteboard filled with sticky notes, in a scene from The Grab that tries to build a sense of suspense.

Today we’re going to talk about a film I do not recommend—at least, not for content.

It is, however, an excellent case study in journalist and documentarian missteps, so if you’d like to watch the film while paying close attention to its rhetorical strategies, you might find the experience instructive.

Or annoying. Or maddening.

I went into The Grab aware …

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