Frontline: Is Wal-Mart Good for America?

“We cannot continue to be a solvent nation as long as we pursue this current accelerating direction. Our company is firmly committed to the philosophy by buying everything possible from suppliers who manufacture their products in the United States.” — Sam Walton

That was then... in 1985, to be precise. In 2005, the PBS Series “Frontline” explored the relationship between U.S. job losses, the offshoring of manufacturing to China, and the American consumer’s insatiable desire for bargains in “Is Wal-Mart Good for America?” Through interviews with retail executives, product manufacturers, economists, and trade experts, correspondent Hedrick Smith examines the growing controversy over the Wal-Mart way of doing business and asks whether a single retail giant has perhaps irrevocably changed the American economy.