Article Comparison: Super Size Me

The documentary “Super Size Me” starring Morgan Spurlock shows us the reality of eating fast food on a regular basis. Spurlock was determined to use this experiment to prove to Americans that eating fast food, specifically McDonald's, can cause serious problems. As Spurlock did the experiment, not only did he gain weight but he also experienced other unpleasant symptoms such as loss of breath, headaches and high blood pressure. The releasing of this movie caused controversy everywhere as people had different viewpoints about the precision of this monthly long trial. The two reviews, one from the New York Times and the other from TCS Daily clearly show two different opinions.

The first review from the New York Times reveals information about the movie that is more clear and straightforward. The reviewer, A.O. Scott seems like he is talking for everyone. He claims “that we should kill McDonald's before McDonald's kills us”. Even though, he states that this is not possible in the society we live in, he believes we need to change our daily lives in order not to indulge in fast food. Overall, this review was more towards what the public wants to really hear rather than a sugar coated review. It gives details of certain parts in the movie as well as some references to other problems such as issues dealing with tobacco companies.

The second review by Dr. Ruth Kava is more critical about the accurateness of the experiment. This person questions whether or not all of the information was displayed to the public or if it was over exaggerated. She also proposes that in reality, people do not eat fast food three times a day everyday so therefore the experiment would not be accurate. The reviewer is suggesting that Spurlock knew the outcome; gaining 25 pounds and that Spurlock wants to blame McDonald's rather than us individuals for consuming fast food even though we are the ones who buy it. For example, people know cigarettes are bad for our health but they still buy and smoke them. Why? Because they are addicted. Commercials and advertisements of McDonald's are targeting young children and adults everyday. By doing this, our future generations will be exposed to fast foods and from all directions, will dominate our family restaurants, our living rooms, or even our cars.

Overall, these two articles show contrasting views as one talks about the movie on a neutral note and the other questions the accuracy of the experiment. The New York Times article was more general and talked about the negative effects of fast food. The review from TCS Daily was more reasonable because even though it said the experiment was not original, it also pointed out that it was unrealistic. It is very improbable that someone eats McDonald's 3 times a day over a long period of time. Although the review from the New York Times is stating the obvious harms, the article from TCS Daily is examining a more realistic approach.