Hijacking Catastrophe

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Hijacking Catastrophe
Hijacking catastrophe (poster).jpg
Film poster
Directed byJeremy Earp
Sut Jhally
Narrated by Julian Bond
Release date
  • 2004 (2004)
Running time
68 minutes
CountryUnited States

Hijacking Catastrophe: 9/11, Fear & the Selling of American Empire is a 2004 documentary film narrated by Julian Bond and directed by Jeremy Earp and Sut Jhally. It examines the possibility that neoconservatives used the September 11 attacks to usher in a new doctrine of expanding American power through military force under the guise of a "war on terror" and that the doctrine, known as the Project for the New American Century (PNAC), [1] [2] [3] had been laid out prior to 9/11 by its authors, which include Dick Cheney, Paul Wolfowitz, Donald Rumsfeld, Jeb Bush, and Dan Quayle.

Contents

Summary

The film maintains that fear of terrorism was manipulated to support goals which are in step with the PNAC; namely the overthrow of Saddam Hussein. [4] [5] Not just for control of regional strategic resources (natural gas and oil), but to reassert American dominance on the world stage as a warning to potential adversaries. [6] Interviews were conducted with critics such as Noam Chomsky and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Jody Williams. It also interviews policy analysts, military brass, journalists, insider observations from Chief UN Weapons Inspector Scott Ritter and Pentagon whistleblower Lt. Colonel Karen Kwiatkowski.

The historical context of the "Bush Doctrine" is examined and compared to Wolfowitz's PNAC philosophy. The film goes on to look at the "selling of American empire" and the possible economical, social, cultural and political implications it will have in America, and on the world if implemented further during Bush's second term.

Cast

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bush Doctrine</span> US foreign policy principles of President George W. Bush promoting preventive war and unilateralism

The Bush Doctrine refers to multiple interrelated foreign policy principles of the 43rd President of the United States, George W. Bush. These principles include unilateralism, preemptive war, and regime change.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reagan Doctrine</span> Doctrine proposed by the Reagan administration

The Reagan Doctrine was stated by United States President Ronald Reagan in his State of the Union address on February 6, 1985: "We must not break faith with those who are risking their lives—on every continent from Afghanistan to Nicaragua—to defy Soviet-supported aggression and secure rights which have been ours from birth." It was a strategy implemented by the Reagan Administration to overwhelm the global influence of the Soviet Union in the late Cold War. The doctrine was a centerpiece of United States foreign policy from the early 1980s until the end of the Cold War in 1991.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul Wolfowitz</span> American politician and diplomat (born 1943)

Paul Dundes Wolfowitz is an American political scientist and diplomat who served as the 10th President of the World Bank, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense, U.S. Ambassador to Indonesia, and former dean of Johns Hopkins SAIS. He is currently a visiting scholar at the American Enterprise Institute.

The Project for the New American Century (PNAC) was a neoconservative think tank based in Washington, D.C., that focused on United States foreign policy. It was established as a non-profit educational organization in 1997, and founded by William Kristol and Robert Kagan. PNAC's stated goal was "to promote American global leadership." The organization stated that "American leadership is good both for America and for the world," and sought to build support for "a Reaganite policy of military strength and moral clarity."

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Richard Norman Perle is an American political advisor who served as the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Global Strategic Affairs under President Ronald Reagan. He began his political career as a senior staff member to Senator Henry "Scoop" Jackson on the Senate Armed Services Committee in the 1970s. He served on the Defense Policy Board Advisory Committee from 1987 to 2004 where he served as chairman from 2001 to 2003 under the Bush Administration before resigning due to conflict of interests.

<i>The Weekly Standard</i> Former American conservative opinion magazine

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sut Jhally</span> Film director & producer; founder of the Media Education Foundation

Sut Jhally is a professor of communication at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, whose work focuses on cultural studies, advertising, media, and consumption. He is the producer of over 40 documentaries on media literacy topics and the founder and executive director of the Media Education Foundation.

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References

  1. Encyclopedia of Social Movement Media, Edited by John D. H. Downing Page 322
  2. The New Yorker, Volume 82, Issues 27-35 Page 5
  3. Progressive Hollywood: A People's Film History of the United States, By Ed Rampell Page 247
  4. The New Yorker, Volume 82, Issues 27-35 Page 5
  5. Progressive Hollywood: A People's Film History of the United States, By Ed Rampell Page 247
  6. Encyclopedia of Social Movement Media, Edited by John D. H. Downing Page 322
  7. Slant Magazine, September 5, 2004 Hijacking Catastrophe by Ed Gonzalez
  8. University of Missouri Hijacking Catastrophe: 9/11, Fear & Selling of American Empire