Talk:Erin Brockovich

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[edit] Questionable data?

" Since the movies release, the "factual" data cited in the movie have been called into question. "

How? Show me who is saying this. How has it been "called into question"? WhisperToMe 20:32, 12 Jul 2004 (UTC)

Check out the two external links on the top article (the entry about the person, not the movie). It lists numerous "facts" that the author disproves. The rebuttal and the rebuttal to the rebuttal discusses it even further. If you like, I can cite the author for the phrase you removed. I'm not saying I agree with the author, but we do try to be NPOV here. Peace. :-) — Frecklefoot | Talk 21:00, Jul 12, 2004 (UTC)

Read the Salon.com story link at the bottom of the article. It argues that the real story may not be as rosey and heroic as the movie portrays. It analyzes in great detail potential conflicts of interest by the arbitrator, questionable science regarding chromium's actual water-borne toxicity to humans in, and serious questions about how little money each plantiff (victim) actually received (compared to the $133 million their attorney's took off the top). I'm not saying the article is 100% accurate, but it's an interesting and informative read.

The prior criticisms of Brockovich in the article were based on some highly questionable work by Michael Fumento, a nonscientist with a partisan agenda. I have revised the article to provide more information and to avoid reliance on Fumento's work. John M Baker 17:40, 12 March 2007 (UTC)

The characterization of Fumento's work as 'questionable' is entirely your opinion. The article as it stands after your edit does not clearly indicate that there is controversy over Brokovitch's claims - which there most surely is.

Fumento is not a scientist. His writings are highly partisan, and his selection and reading of evidence seem heavily influenced by political ideology.[1] He has been known to accept undisclosed funding from the business interests he supports.[2] Considering these facts, I think there is a heavy burden on anyone who chooses to cite Fumento.

The article currently states that scientists are divided on the merits of Brockovich's work. I would support a more detailed discussion, if one could be achieved based upon solid sources, without original research, and without abandoning NPOV. John M Baker 19:07, 26 March 2007 (UTC)

I think you are the one having trouble with the concept of NPOV. The sections in the article that you have now twice removed did not 'cite' Fumento in order to establish a point of view, but simply pointed out that disagreements exist and provided links to source material if the reader is interested. The latest revision even went so far as to caution the reader against considering Fumento as an unbiased source. Simply inserting a throwaway 'scientists are divided' line into an entry that otherwise reads like a cheer squad chant for brockovich (with a link to supporting material that requires payment in order to access), does not provide a adequate level of objectivity. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 202.2.57.110 (talk) 08:36, 27 March 2007 (UTC).

Just to say that Fumento is "controversial" fails to convey his lack of credibility in an encyclopedia. I would love to see a good discussion of this issue, but that takes more than citing to Fumento, even with a disclaimer. I've corrected the references to cite properly to Science, rather than just linking to password-protected pages. John M Baker 19:34, 27 March 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Miss Wichita

Was Erin really Miss Wichita? Or was that just artistic license? Tomer^talk 22:42, 23 July 2006 (UTC)

Not quite...Found it here...

Had Erin Brockovich really been Miss Wichita?

In responding to a question regarding the movie's accuracy, Erin answered by saying the following, "It's about 98 to 99 percent accurate. They took very, very few liberties. One of the liberties was, I was not Miss Wichita, I was actually Miss Pacific Coast, right here in California. Steven Soderbergh thought it would be cute since I was from Kansas to throw that in there." -CommonWealthClub.org

Tomer^talk 22:57, 23 July 2006 (UTC)