# The Awful Truth (1999)

> Filmmaker Michael Moore hosts a satirical news-style program skewering corporate and political wrongdoing, with a costumed chicken as its comic crime fighter.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/10547

## Facts

- Seasons: 2
- Episodes: 24
- Episode runtime: 30 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: comedy, documentary
- Created by: Michael Moore
- Network: Bravo, Channel 4
- Cast: Michael Moore, Karen Duffy, Gideon Evans, Jay Martel, Tom Lantos, Asa Hutchinson, Paul Wellstone, James Carville
- TMDB rating: 6.6/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0190171/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: brisk
- Intensity: moderate
- Complexity: accessible
- Violence: none
- Tone: irreverent, sardonic, combative, playful

## Synopsis

The Awful Truth (1999-2000) is a United States satirical documentary comedy series created by Michael Moore and broadcast on Bravo and Channel 4. Moore hosts and writes the half-hour program as himself, going after corporate misconduct and political hypocrisy with pranks, mock investigations and confrontational interviews. Alongside him, Karen Duffy and Jay Martel appear as regular performers, and Gideon Evans plays Crackers the Corporate Crime Fighting Chicken, a costumed mascot who gives the show its absurd recurring bit. Across two seasons totaling twenty-four episodes, the series is built around short, self-contained segments rather than a continuing story, so each episode works as its own barbed takedown. Guests include politicians such as Trent Lott, James Carville and Asa Hutchinson, who appear as themselves and are lampooned in the mock-serious style. The tone is irreverent, sardonic and combative, a mix of news parody and activist provocation set against the late 1990s American political and corporate landscape. Fans of The Daily Show, Chappelle's Show and Roger & Me will find resonance in its blend of comedy and documentary-style investigation.

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