sicko

Outlook healthy for health care Web sites, but use caution

Although you can't singlehandedly fix the woes of national health care that are spotlighted in the movie Sicko, many free Web sites at least put a bit more power in your hands to manage personal wellness or a medical crisis. Just share your data wisely.

WebMD (a Webware 100 winner) offers videos, virtual support groups, quizzes, blogs, doctor lookups, and a spiffy symptom checker. Look up drugs by a pill's color, imprint or shape. WebMD won't spam you, but as with its competitors, if you subscribe to e-mail updates about some unappetizing ailment, then prepare for related … Read more

Google strikes Sicko in ploy for pharmie funds

Lauren Turner is a blogger. Unlike many bloggers out there, she does not blog for herself, she blogs for her employer. As a writer for the Google Health Advertising Blog, Ms. Turner decided to make a post about her reaction to Michael Moore's latest film Sicko. In her recent post, Does negative press make you Sicko, Turner criticizes the new film arguing that, "Moore attacks health insurers, health providers, and pharmaceutical companies by connecting them to isolated and emotional stories of the system at its worst. Moore's film portrays the industry as money and marketing driven, and fails to show healthcare's interest in patient well-being and care." Given what I know about Moore's approach to film making, I'm inclined to think that this is somewhat on point, but I've yet to check out the film, and I suspect Turner hasn't either.

It's true that Michael Moore uses specific examples to paint a broader picture, and it's true that he only includes evidence that supports his thesis, but these were the exact instructions given to me by my high school English teacher when I was taught how to write an essay. Turner, being the good corporate blogger goes on to explain how Google advertising can help these poor little health insurance companies "get the facts" out and better manage their reputations against the publics perception that these companies value profits over patients.

… Read more

'Sicko' watch: Vital signs good despite file sharing

The official numbers aren't in yet, but reports indicate that the debut of Michael Moore's documentary on the health care industry is a smash--this despite being downloaded on file-sharing sites a week before the opening.

Sicko sold out in the 43 theaters across the country where it appeared during "sneak" previews last weekend. The film's producers, the Weinstein Company, won't reveal earnings, but in New York, the movie appeared on one theater screen and still managed to bank $70,000. By all indications, this is a blockbuster number.

I've been tracking how Moore's expose … Read more

Sicko Watch: Moore's 'Sicko' a hit...with pirate community

If the pirate community is any judge of movies, Michael Moore's Sicko is sure to be a hit.

On the day that the documentary about the health care industry is scheduled to debut, unauthorized copies continue to flitter across the Web. Illegal downloading of the film began gathering steam last week when copies appeared at The PirateBay, YouTube and Google Video.

What started with just a few hundred people a week ago, has mushroomed into the tens of thousands. A review of torrent search engines Mininova, TorrentReactor.net, The PirateBay, Isohunt and Torrentz on Friday showed that thousands of … Read more

Could YouTube, PirateBay and file sharing boost 'Sicko'?

We could soon learn more about whether illegal file sharing is a friend or foe to a movie debut.

Sicko, the documentary about the health-care industry from director Michael Moore is due to be released on Friday. To several thousand fans of YouTube, Google Video and The PirateBay, the movie's opening came a week earlier. That's when bootleg copies began cropping up at those places.

Any studio exec will say each illegal download represents a lost ticket sale. That's food out of the mouths of cinematographers, actors, costumers and best boys, the studio suit will huff.

Not … Read more