Moore puts in last effort
2004-11-02 10:47
Los Angeles - Michael Moore intends to be a nuisance to President George W Bush until the last minute, as his fiery anti-Bush documentary Fahrenheit 9/11 was available to millions of US satellite television subscribers on Monday on the eve of the US election.
The film, which slams Bush's response to the September 11 attacks and his decision to invade Iraq, was available for $9.95 late on Monday to the Dish Network's 10 million clients and to 30 million homes using internet video provider CinemaNow.
Moore made no secret that he wished his film could influence the election when it was released in US theatres June.
The documentary's DVD was made available for rent and sale in early October, one month before the election. At the time Moore urged people to use it "as your own personal weapon of George Bush's mass defeat".
With less than 24 hours before Americans head to the polls, Moore was still going for Bush's jugular, urging people to vote for Democratic Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts.
'Give the new guy a chance'
"In your heart of hearts you know Bush is a miserable failure," Moore wrote on his website to "Decent Conservatives and Recovering Republicans".
"I know many of you don't like Bush, but are unsure of Kerry. Give the new guy a chance."
In his lengthy message, he also wrote to his "Friends on the left" and the two candidates.
"I know it's gotta be rough for you right now. Hey, we've all been there. 'You're fired' are two horrible words when put together in that order," Moore wrote to the president.
To Kerry, he wrote: Thank you. And don't worry - none of us are going away after you are inaugurated. We'll be there to hold your hand and keep you honest. Don't let us down. We're betting you won't. So is the rest of the world."
Anti-Kerry documentary
EchoStar Communications Corp, which owns the Dish Network, also offered an anti-Kerry documentary to its subscribers late on Monday.
The satellite network offered journalist Carlton Sherwood's Stolen Honour: Wounds That Never Heal, a documentary strongly critical of Kerry's appearance before Congress in 1971, when the Vietnam veteran vehemently denounced the war and said US troops had committed atrocities.
The two controversial documentaries were only made available on election eve.
"We are pleased to provide our customers a variety of political films and documentaries so they can make informed choices," said Susan Arnold, vice president of programming at EchoStar.
US media conglomerate Sinclair Broadcast Group, which owns 62 television stations, had planned to show Stolen Honour on its local stations in several key US states.
Sinclair's plans led to a wave of Democratic and non-partisan protests accusing it of trying to influence the election. It stock dropped, prompting Sinclair to cancel the showing of the entire documentary.