Wag the Dog Film Questions
Introduction to Media Unit
1.
Explain the metaphor of “wag the dog”. What does the title of the film suggest?
- the dog is smarter than the tail; therefore, the dog is in charge
- media is the tail & the American public/everyone is the dog
- in an ideal situation the people would control the media, but in Wag the Dog the media control the
people (just like real world)
- metaphor for the power of media & the naïve nature of people
2.
Who is Mr. FixFix-it?
it? What does he do?
- Robert DeNiro – Conrad Breen
- he fixes media relations for the president
3.
What is the significance of the producer’s house being larger than the White House? What message does
that relay?
- CODES
- producer has more money & more power than the president
- other indicators – producer in the oval office for the speech (just a change of wardrobe)
- producer puts the president on hold
- we never see the president – except 2x & never see his whole face
4.
Explain the significance
significance of “We remember the slogans, but we don’t remember the war.” in terms of
media’s effectiveness.
- never see the actual war – just hear the messages
- slogans are catchy – they stick with us
- media is powerful & manipulative
5.
Explain the significance
significance of “Of course there’s a war; I’m seeing it on TV!” in terms of media’s
effectiveness.
- media can supersede reality
- we trust & believe what we see – especially on TV
- visual images are very powerful
6.
Who seems more powerful, the producer or the
the President? Why?
- Producer
- other indicators – producer in the oval office for the speech (just a change of wardrobe)
- producer puts the president on hold
- we never see the president – except 2x & never see his whole face
7.
The merchandising of products such as the “303 Burger” which Schuman “ate” behind enemy
lines is often reflected in our society today. Provide 3 examples of this type of merchandising.
- Happy Gilmore – Subway sandwich – product placement in a film
- athletes using Nike or Reebok
- Wayne’s World – parody of product placement
- Fad King – said he was going to call Nike (in the movie)
- Harold & Kumar go to White Castle
- Gatorade or Powerade connection with sports
- Famous people wearing those balance bracelets
- Happy Meals – power rangers in the meal as the toy
- Epic Meal time – Youtube
- movie tie-ins with restaurants, books, toys, music, clothes, etc.
8.
Why do you think people followed the “shoe” trend? Can you think of any trends like that in our
society?
- because everyone else did it
- we are easily influenced ex. Clothing trends
- peer pressure to join
- doing what friends are doing – drugs, etc.
- wristbands – bands, choose to be great, breast cancer, live strong, rankin cancer run, etc.
- yellow ribbon, pink for MS, orange for leukemia, red for AIDS, green for missing children
- yellow daffodils for cancer society, poppy for Remembrance Day, trillium for Ontario, mistletoe
9. Find examples of how Wag the Dog demonstrates the following four principles
principles of media (point form):
Media Construct Reality
- Create the war
- Everyone reacts to what they see on TV
- Make the song older than it actually is
- Producer dies of a heart attack
- We need to be stronger than our “tails” – be more aware of media & its power
- Question the media
- Whole personality of the president was constructed – he was fake!
- Power of the producer – film constructed his power
Media Present Ideology & Value Messages:
- Don’t trust the media
- Question it
- Power of the president
- Power of media
- We follow the money – if you have money, then you have power & can get away with A LOT
- Producer wanted the credit – he lost his life because of it – allure of fame
- Fame is powerful, desirable
Commercial Interests:
- 303 burger
- Tostitos bag in the video
- IBM laptops
- Product placements
- Shoe contracts, granite contracts, the merchandising rights
- Seal Team 6 – Disney buys the rights to the name so they have the merchandising rights for everything
- Producer mentions all of the money that his films grossed
- Everyone did stuff if they were paid (back end on this?)
Codes & Conventions:
- Reflection of the flag in the window when the Secret Service picked up the producer (patriotism)
- Dog followed the casket – made Schuman look decent
- Drumming & music (patriotic)
- Video of Albania – perfect girl, ooh waa sirens, the “Anne Franks”, the flames, smoke, cat
- Handheld camera & shaky during scene where Schuman got killed – more intense, witnessed it,
DOCUMENTARY style vs. a slick Hollywood movie where we don’t notice the camera