Street Fight (2005) is about the election between Cory Booker and Sharpe James and the issue with legality and ethics behind the two candidates running for election. The two candidates are faced with many accusations being made on each side about their upbringing, race, sexual orientation, etc. The documentary focuses on the news reporting and coverage of the issue with ethics and legality behind these accusations that are being made, as well as the journalist’s handle on these accusations. The filmmaker, Marshall Curry highlights the important events behind the scenes of the election between Booker and James. David Denby from The New Yorker has said that this documentary was “extraordinary” (Denby, David. "Candid Cameras". The New Yorker. Retrieved 14 May 2015.) and John Anderson from the Variety has said that it was “vastly entertaining” (Anderson, John. "Review: 'Street Fight'". Variety. Retrieved 14 May 2015)
-The players are Cory Booker and Sharpe James. They are both running for mayor in the election.
-The journalist and media try to capture the different scandals and accusations revolving around both Booker and James. They try to capture the different accusations, that try to prevent each side from winning. There are accusations made around Booker's ethnicity, sexuality, his upbringing, which brings into question if he is fit to be the mayor of Newark or not. Sharpe James is accused of going to a strip club and has his ethics and morality questioned on the terrains of the election.
-This storytelling of the election is really effective, as it tries to highlight everything that has been going on, including the deep accusations and rumors behind the candidates. The storytelling tries to dig deeper into the struggles behind the candidates run for mayor and how these accusations and rumors are made to tear each candidate down in the election. The storytelling shows the risks and problems associated with running for election.
-What's working is the storytelling of the election. I think the storytelling of behind the scenes of these accusations that are being made is definitely brought to light. Even though there are times when the journalists are shut down on the spot from taking any more information, there is still information going around about the two candidates that becomes a source of interest among the voters.
-However, the election itself has become very sporadic, in terms of peace and calm among the candidates' lives and what the voters expect and want out of the candidates. Because there is so much misinformation going around, it is difficult for the candidates to really show their true selves and authenticity in this election. People tend to believe this misinformation that's been going around, instead of what the candidates has to say themselves.
-It surprises me how powerful accusations can be. I would have never thought that a single accusation being made can essentially tear a candidate down. The accusations seem to hold more weight than what the candidates have to say.
-If I were to do the work differently, I would have been more cautious with the information I bring to the public. Instead of causing these accusations to be made, I would have tried to instead prevent accusations. I think a journalist's job is to spread information, rather than "create" misinformation. A single accusation can hold a lot of power in how the voters see the candidates. Unless I know that the information I am bringing to the public is completely true and factual, I would try to stay away from letting these accusations come to the surface.
