The purpose of this blog is to fulfill an assignment for my Persuasion course, a Communication Theory requirement at Old Dominion University. In this post, I will be conducting an artifact analysis on the 2021 documentary mini-series “Sasquatch”. For this assignment, I will be analyzing three different persuasive theories and/or topics that I believe are present in this documentary series, or docu-series. The three theories: Social Judgment Theory, Social Comparison Theory and Marketing, are all present in this series. Their presence leads me to believe that this docu-series is a good example of the use of persuasion in the most interesting and intriguing matter.
In April of 2021, the three-part docu-series “Sasquatch” premiered on the streaming service Hulu. The official synopsis provided by Rotten Tomatoes is as follows, “after hearing a haunting story about a savage Bigfoot attack, David Holthouse revisits Northern California 25 years later to hunt for evidence that might lead to the truth about what happened.” While the synopsis declares this, the actual content of the documentary painted a very different and intriguing story. The documentary shed some light about the underground cannabis industry in Northern California and how these underground rings use the legend of Sasquatch, from that same region to their advantage. The documentary is, in fact, not a monster hunt as it is advertised, but a true crime investigation that uncovers a more sinister event that took place at the hands of a very real monster: Man. I believe the marketing of this documentary ‘lured’ in an audience to this all too real, yet little talked about world in the backwoods of Northern California.
According to Robert H. Gass, aspirational brands are those that consumers admire and aspire to own one day (Persuasion, 2017). We can imagine the Sasquatch or Bigfoot phenomenon as a kind of brand in this fashion. For decades, the phenomenon has inspired books, movies, merchandise, exploring and has created its own niche in pop culture that holds strong to this day. When the documentary was released, it was advertised as a “true crime”, which also attracted lovers of true crime. According to Sarah Watts of Forbes, the United States is currently experiencing a rise in viewers who are obsessed with true crime. Because of this, production companies are having to satiate this obsession with new and thrilling true crime documentary movies and/or series. Watts also stated that, “according to Dr. John Mayer, a clinical psychologist who studies violence and media, purposefully exposing oneself to violence can serve as an ‘inoculation’ against fear, a way to build up our tolerance to something scary and seemingly inevitable”. Building on this observation and with supporting evidence, it is safe to say that Hulu used this recent obsession to their advantage. By combining viewers who are obsessed with the Sasquatch phenomena and viewers who are obsessed with true crime, Hulu was able to persuade their users through this marketing to watch this documentary series. Making the audience think it is about one thing and still satisfy the viewer when they find out it is not what it is advertised to be. ‘Sasquatch’ is about exposing the audience to the underground world of the cannabis industry, why the region and its industry has been demonized, and exposing a truly horrific case that took place in this region in 1993 that brings about some very important social justice concerns.
To make sense of what took place in 1993, the documentary’s second episode sheds some light on the subculture of the Emerald Triangle, a region of Northern California that is well known for its marijuana farms and isolation from the prying eyes of the government. Essentially, a community of families were living in the rugged mountains of Humboldt County in Northern California where they strove to live a completely self-sufficient lifestyle apart from the modernizing world. To make money for themselves, they opted to grown cannabis, although illegal at the time, a very valuable cash crop. This was during the height of the “War on Drugs” in the 1990’s and according to the Spokane Chronicle, the operation was the first time active-duty troops were used to combat marijuana growing in the United States (1990). While at first, this seems like it was a glorious victory for the government, that is what we have been persuaded to think by the mainstream media at the time. According to Hau Chu of the Washington Post, “there are some fascinating looks at the history of the marijuana-growing subculture of Northern California’s Emerald Triangle and at the often-outrageous militaristic effort by the government to crack down on it. Interviews with members of Operation Green Sweep and the Campaign Against Marijuana Planting — and the farmers whose crops were being destroyed — show why it’s difficult to get locals to talk about anything going on in their world, Bigfoot or otherwise. Is it a sense of shame from those involved? Possibly. But more likely, it’s the secrecy that defined the marijuana business long before legalization efforts, and the pain inflicted on those who tried to horn in on local growers’ business.” (2021). I believe the persuasive theory presented on this matter is the Social Comparison Theory, which is defined as the proposition that people evaluate their abilities and attitudes in relation to those of others in a process that plays a significant role in self-image and subjective well-being (APA Dictionary). I believe this specifically uses downward social comparison. The U.S government, particularly the Drug Enforcement Administration, deemed America’s domestic lifestyle and morals as superior to those of the marijuana farmers. From in-person interviews conducted on ‘Sasquatch’ by David Holthouse, it seems that all these people wanted was to be left alone. The government used this persuasive tactic to influence the public to back their decision and justify the use of military action on their own civilians. Thus, the trauma experienced by these people created a great level of distrust with outsiders and has ultimately silenced them whenever someone comes around inquiring about what goes on in their neck of the woods.
Jumping forward into present day, David Holthouse investigates the triple homicide of marijuana farm workers, supposedly, at the hands of the legendary beast. As he investigates, he discovers the identities of the victims, who are unveiled to be illegal migrant workers brought to Humboldt County to work the marijuana farms by the marijuana farm owners. He goes on to interview a surviving family member of one of the deceased, who states that she and her family have receive no help in solving the murder of her uncle, and that when someone tries to, they are shot down by local law enforcement and the operators of the cannabis industry. Even if someone in law enforcement were to try to investigate, they would hit a roadblock with the lack of documentation of the three victims. These victims were not even able to be reported missing for fear of deportation of the family. I believe this is a good example of social judgment theory, which is the theory of attitude change postulating that the magnitude of persuasion produced by a particular message depends on how much the position advocated in the message differs from a person’s attitude (APA Dictionary). The present stigma of illegal immigrants dictated how they were treated by the people who they needed help from. I believe the way this family must deal with not knowing what truly happened to their loved one because of the judgment they face as illegal immigrants, and the corruption of the local law enforcement indicates that there is purposeful cover-up of this case. That is what Holthouse exposes in the end of this of the documentary. He uncovers that the murders were committed by enforcers of a cannabis overlord who were ordered to make it look like it was committed by the legendary cryptid. We can only assume this was all part of the cover-up and to scare outsiders away. However, he stops while he is ahead of this sinister truth as he receives anonymous death threats to stop looking into it before he gets in over his head. Ultimately, the audience is left wondering whether there will ever be true justice for the three murdered migrant workers. Will there ever be accountability? The audience is left to wonder.
References:
· Watts, S. (2019, February 28). What one researcher discovered about America's true crime obsession. Forbes. Retrieved October 3, 2022, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/sarahwatts/2019/02/28/what-one-researcher-discovered-about-americas-true-crime-obsession/?sh=65c3234c5e6e.
· Gass, R. H., Seiter, J. S., & R.E, P. (2017). In Persuasion: Social influence and compliance gaining (pp. 54-57). essay, Routledge.
· Chu, H. (2021, April 22). 'sasquatch': 3 takeaways from the new true-crime series on the folkloric beast. The Washington Post. Retrieved October 3, 2022, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2021/04/20/sasquatch-hulu-series-takeaways/.
· N., P. M. S. (2015, June 29). What is social comparison theory? definition of social comparison theory (psychology dictionary). Psychology Dictionary. Retrieved October 3, 2022, from https://psychologydictionary.org/social-comparison-theory/.
· American Psychological Association. (n.d.). Apa Dictionary of Psychology. American Psychological Association. Retrieved October 3, 2022, from https://dictionary.apa.org/social-judgment-theory.
· Sasquatch. Rotten Tomatoes. (n.d.). Retrieved October 3, 2022, from https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/sasquatch.
· Bishop, K. (1990, August 10). Military takes part in drug sweep and reaps criticism and a lawsuit. The New York Times. Retrieved October 3, 2022, from https://www.nytimes.com/1990/08/10/us/military-takes-part-in-drug-sweep-and-reaps-criticism-and-a-lawsuit.html.
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