NEW YORK (CNN/Money) -
Move over Michael Moore. It's Robert Greenwald's time to shine.
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Robert Greenwald's "Outfoxed" tops Amazon.com's best-selling DVD list. |
"Outfoxed - Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism," an anti-Fox News Channel documentary directed by Greenwald, has topped the best-selling DVD list on Amazon.com, beating out pre-orders for the widescreen edition of "Star Wars Trilogy" and Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ."
The controversial project, which portrays Fox News as a slanted and right-leaning news organization, skipped a theatrical release and its DVD went on sale online on July 13. Fox News is a direct competitor with CNN, the parent of CNN/Money.
Amazon has ordered more than 6,200 copies of Greenwald's film from distributor Ryko Distribution, according to trade publication Variety.
The documentary, partially financed by Moveon.org and the Center for American Progress, a think tank headed by John Podesta, former chief of staff in the Clinton administration, claimed that Fox News, a division Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. (NWS: Research, Estimates), turns Republican talking points into news headlines.
Moveon.org, the anti-Bush "grass-roots" organization, also filed a complaint to the Federal Trade Commission on Monday, asking the government agency to outlaw Fox News Channel's use of the slogan "Fair and Balanced."
Chief amongst the station's critics in the film is former "Saturday Night Live" comedian Al Franken, who clashed with Fox News host Bill O'Reilly last year over Franken's best-selling book, "Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right," which poked fun at Fox News and O'Reilly.
Fox News sued Franken and his publisher, claiming his book's subtitle infringed on its trademark phrase "Fair and Balanced." Fox later dropped the lawsuit after a judge said its motion for an injunction was "wholly without merit."
"Outfoxed," which cost about $300,000 to make, sells for $9.95 on Amazon.com and its own promotional site Outfoxed.org.
Fox News, Amazon.com and Outfoxed.org could not immediately be reached for comment.
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