Summary
The documentary "America-From Freedom To Fascism" talks about many different tax laws and government spending. The producer and narrator of the film utilizes many different news articles and videos to back up and add to his ideas. He also interviews experts on different topics: Bob Schulz and Charlie Beall-We the People Foundation, Peter Gibbons-Tax Attorney, Catherine Austin Fitts-former Assistant Secretary of Housing, and many others. This documentary goes into detail about the different types of taxes and what those taxes are spent on by the government.
There are many different tax deductions and subsidies on the United States tax forms, but what do all the different taxes mean? In the film "America-From Freedom To Fascism" the narrator takes its viewers through countless interviews to find out. Some of the taxes this film explores are the federal income tax, the estate tax, the local tax, and others. The documentary helps clear up some of the misconceptions about taxes and explains what each tax is really for.
This film does not only talk about how tax is calculated, but where those tax dollars actually go, government spending. The narrator interviews politicians, experts on government spending, to try and find out what each tax actually pays for. Bob Schulz, from the We the People Foundation, goes into detail about what each type of tax pays for. For example, the local property tax pays for most of the education system, the tax on gasoline pays for maintaining roadways, and the income tax pays for most of the military expenses. This film explores taxes in greater detail than I have seen in any of my other research and it is a very good source of information.
Storytelling Techniques
Throughout the documentary there is a narrator that adds information to what is happening in the film. The story is told through many different peoples perspectives, but they all talk about the same main point, taxes. The documentary does not go off topic or change topics in the middle of the story, it has one plot and mood. Another technique the producer used was having a lot of visuals. While the experts talked, the film showed pictures of other things that were related to what the experts were saying. This kept the viewer from getting bored and also made the viewer feel some emotion toward the topic because of what they were seeing. This documentary uses many storytelling techniques to keep its viewers interested and involved in the story.
Media Elements
This film utilizes news programs and TV shows to help add and confirm information already given earlier. The short clips of TV shows that the producer added into the documentary add some comic relief to a series topic. Aside from TV shows, news programs play a critical role in confirming what the narrator and interviewees say is actually fact. The documentary is made more credible by adding media elements to give more information on the topic.
Other Sources Brought into Documentary
This documentary brings in more than just the narrator talking about taxes, and that makes this documentary even more credible. The producer of this film utilizes interviews with experts and people that have been a part of the political system that deals with taxes. Interviews with people that are a part of the tax system and know a lot about how it works occur many times in this film. The narrator conducts over 15 interviews throughout the documentary and most of the information he gets is directly related to the topic, tax laws and where the tax dollars actually go.
Credibility
There is very little bias in this film, it shows both sides of the arguments about taxes. The narrator might ask a question that sounds a little bias one way, but then the next question has bias from the other point of view. The narrator also asks questions that are open ended, that is, they can be answered supporting or not supporting the United States tax system. Overall, this film does not sound very bias and it is quite a credible source of information because it has interviews and news programs involved.
Connection to my Capstone
My capstone project is mainly looking at the question, why are taxes so unfair? This documentary explains many different types of taxes and how they are calculated. That information is going to give me a better understanding of how much money an individual has to pay on taxes and why. This will help me figure out why taxes are unfair, it must have something to do with the things that big businesses can deduct and subsidize. The documentary talks about how deductions are calculated and, most importantly, where all the tax dollars go. The increase in government spending is why our taxes are increasing and the increase in taxes is why taxes are so unfair. This documentary brings my capstone full circle back to where it stared with the question, why are taxes so unfair?
Annotated Bibliography
This documentary is explores many different types of taxes and what each tax pays for. The narrator of this film takes the viewer through countless interviews to find out more about how each tax is calculated and who qualifies for it. Throughout this documentary there are short clips of TV shows and news programs that back up what the narrator is saying. This film has some bias because the narrator finds evidence to support his ideas and overlooks information that contradicts his views. This documentary adds a lot of new information to my project and confirms things I have already talked about. My research has not yet gone into detail about government spending, so this film will add something new to my project. Also, the film talks about how certain types of taxes are calculated, a topic I have already explained, so the film will back up my research.
America-From Freedom To Fascism. Dir. Aaron Russo. All Your Freedoms, Inc, 2005. Youtube. Web. 9 March 2014.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kE8RtL3azDg
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