A social problem film is a narrative film that integrates a larger social conflict into the individual conflict between its characters. Like many film genres, the exact definition is often in the eye of the beholder, but Hollywood did produce and market a number of topical films in the 1930s and by the 1940s, the term "social problem" or "message" film was conventional in its usage among the film industry and the public.
Historian Kay Sloan has shown how various reformist groups made social problem shorts and features during the silent era. Generally, these dealt with prohibition, labor relations and concerns over "white slavery." As a genre, however, these Progressive statements did not touch off a long-lasting concern in the film industry, which was solidifying behind standardized product, oligopoly and the star system.
Warner Brothers under Darryl F. Zanuck started making topical films "ripped from the headlines." These "headliners" generally were cheaply made, gritty in their realist aesthetic, and foregrounded a working class milieu and New Deal political sympathies. Mervyn LeRoy's I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang was the most notable of the genre, and its success led Warner Brothers and other studios to copy the formula.
A social issue (also called a social problem, social conflict, or social illness) refers to an issue that influences and is opposed by a considerable number of individuals within a society. It is often the consequence of factors extending beyond an individual's social issue is the source of a conflicting opinion on the grounds of what is perceived as a morally just personal life or societal order. Social issues are distinguished from economic issues; however, some issues (such as immigration) have both social and economic aspects. There are also issues that don't fall into either category, such as wars.
There can be disagreements about what social issues are worth solving, or which should take precedent. Different individuals and different societies have different perceptions.
In Rights of Man and Common Sense, Thomas Paine addresses man's duty to "allow the same rights to others as we allow ourselves". The failure to do so causes the birth of a social issue.
There are a variety of methods people use to combat social issues. Some people vote for leaders in a democracy to advance their ideals. Outside the political process, people donate or share their time, money, energy, or other resources. This often takes the form of volunteering. Nonprofit organizations are often formed for the sole purpose of solving a particular social issue. Community organizing involves gathering people together for a common purpose.