Nor is the film's reach limited to the Web. According to the Times, "More than 7,000 schools, churches and others have ordered a DVD version.... It has also won support from independent groups that advise teachers on curriculum choices. Facing the Future, a curriculum developer for schools in all 50 states, is drafting lesson plans based on the video. And Ms. Leonard has a contract with Simon & Schuster to write a book based on the video."
As the Times also notes, the film has its share of detractors, who argue that Leonard applies too broad a brush to industrial society. In the opening sequence, she does admit her own addiction to the iPod and various other consumer items. But her mea culpa goes no further. Capitalism itself is depicted as a bloated, top-hatted monster, like a more dastardly vision of the Monopoly Man. And Leonard's definition of what goes on in a factory is surely a little black-and-white: "We use energy to mix toxic chemicals in with the natural resources to make toxic, contaminated products."
In Missoula, Montana, one irate parent complained when the film was shown in a science class. As reported in the Missoula Independent Online, "The controversy began in October, when Kathleen Kennedy, a science teacher at Big Sky High School, showed her class The Story of Stuff, a 20-minute video about sustainability. One student's father, Mark Zuber, thought the video was biased and ill-suited for Kennedy's Wildlife Biology class, and lobbied the school district to take action against her."
When his complaint was rejected by a curriculum committee, Zuber appealed to the school board. On January 29, after four hours of arguing, the board voted 4-3 that Kennedy's screening of the video had violated the school district's policy on the presentation of controversial issues. On Leonard's own blog, she suggests that procedural oddities plus spotty attendance by the board members--three out of ten were absent, one at his son's basketball game--explained the outcome. And in another local paper, The Missoulian, Kennedy defended her decision to show The Story of Stuff to her class.
"How many of us have ever purchased something that we badly wanted, but didn't really need?" she writes. "I know I have. I would suspect that some of the folks now in foreclosure would have to admit that they bought more house than they needed. These were the kinds of connections I was hoping students would make. The downturn in the economy was becoming news and, being a teacher who tries to make learning more meaningful by tying it to what is going on in the world, I made the decision that this was a topic worth discussing with students. I am concerned that some parents and school board members would question the motives of teachers who connect current events and their curriculum."
The comment thread following the Missoulian story included both praise and potshots. "Kathleen, I've been with you from the beginning," said Glen, "watching the video and reading the newspaper. Teachers are heroes, and I don't understand Zuber's concern. Perhaps, like his daughter, he found himself with a minority opinion for the first time and isn't used to it." Mike disagreed, and he seemed particularly peeved by the video's attack on brominated flame retardants, or BFRs: "[Y]ou had no intent to discuss with your class the merits of the video and the pros and cons in it. Nor did you point out the lies it told about the flammable retardant issue. At this time I feel [you're] a poor teacher and need to be taken to task and/or fired for your blatant disregard of discussing both sides of an issue."
There was also a busy Twitter discussion of the video and its attendant controversy. The reaction was mostly positive. Said @johnmleone: "Loved the parts about materialism & the 'work-watch-spend' treadmill of American life. That kind of life ain't worth living." Added @kkgyimesi: "How ironic. Introduced my boys to a garage sale this weekend. That was before seeing 'the story of stuff' on NYT today." But @JeffStierACSH was pleased to see the Times delivering a more nuanced view of the film: "At least there's some mention of the slant/indoctrinating kids." And @AshleyEngelman offered up a less partisan reason to avoid The Story of Stuff: "Watch this... and proceed to hate yourself."
