Shadows of Liberty

Synopsis

SHADOWS OF LIBERTY examines the power a handful of powerful corporations has over the US news media, exposing how the influence of vested interests and commercial imperatives has distorted news journalism and compromised its integrity.

The film begins with three case studies of three journalists whose careers were destroyed when the stories they were investigating went against the interests of their employers: Roberta Baskin, whose investigation into Nike sweatshops didn’t sit well with CBS when Nike became a co-sponsor of the Olympics; Kristina Borjesson, another CBS reporter, whose job lasted precisely one week after the network spiked her investigation into the TWA Flight 800 disaster in 1996; and Gary Webb, who committed suicide after his story linking US support for Nicaraguan Contras and the epidemic in crack cocaine was trashed by The New York Times and the Washington Post.

The film goes on to consider how connections between the news media and the US military industrial complex affected the reporting of the reasons for the Iraq War and finally asks whether Internet can withstand corporate pressure and remain free, or will it too fall into the hands of monopolistic corporations.

Language

English

Country

United States

Year of release

2013

Notes

DVD includes two versions of the film: 93 minutes and 53 minutes.

Subjects

Media studies; Politics & government

Keywords

democracy; Internet; journalism; monopolies; news reporting; Iraq war; freedom of the press; Wikileaks; US military

Credits

Director

Jean-Philippe Tremblay

Producer

Dan Cantagallo; Jean-Philippe Tremblay

Cinematographer

Arthur Jafa

Editor

Gregers Sall

Contributor

Amy Goodman; Chris Hedges; Dan Rather; Daniel Ellsberg; Dick Gregory; John Nichols; Julian Assange; Robert McChesney

Distribution Formats

Type

DVD

Format

Region 0 NTSC

Price

$295.00

Availability

Sale

Duration/Size

93 minutes

Year

2013

Production Company

Name

KinoSmith

Distributor

Name

Bullfrog Films

Email

info@bullfrogfilms.com

Web

http://www.bullfrogfilms.com External site opens in new window

Phone

+1 610 779 8226

Fax

+1 610 370 1978

Address

PO Box 149
Oley, PA 19547
USA

Notes

Bullfrog Films is a major US publisher of DVDs and videos about the environment. ‘Environment’ is defined broadly and the collection includes programmes on ecology, energy, agriculture, indigenous peoples, women’s studies, genetics, marine biology, sustainable development, community regeneration, economics, ethics, and conflict resolution. In recent years they have released many films about developing countries, globalisation, changing gender roles and human rights. Styles range from animation to drama and from personal essay to investigative documentary. Bullfrog also distributes the performing arts films from Rhombus Media.