Now "Professional Historians" Pressure ABC to Drop "The Path to 9/11"

A group of leading American historians today sent the following letter to Mr. Robert Iger of ABC. Stressing the significance of the "traumatic" events of 9/11, the signers of this letter are calling on Mr. Iger to stand up for responsible media treatments of such important historical moments and withdraw the program from circulation. The growing list of signatories will be updated at openlettertoabc.blogspot.com.

We write as professional historians, who are deeply concerned by the continuing reports about ABC's scheduled broadcast of "The Path to 9/11." These reports document that this drama contains numerous flagrant falsehoods about critical events in recent American history. The key participants and eyewitnesses to these events state that the script distorts and even fabricates evidence into order to mislead viewers about the responsibility of numerous American officials for allegedly ignoring the terrorist threat before 2000.

The claim by the show's producers, broadcaster, and defenders, that these falsehoods are permissible because the show is merely a dramatization, is disingenuous and dangerous given their assertions that the show is also based on authoritative historical evidence. Whatever ABC's motivations might be, broadcasting these falsehoods, connected to the most traumatic historical event of our times, would be a gross disservice to the public. A responsible broadcast network should have nothing to do with the falsification of history, except to expose it. We strongly urge you to halt the show's broadcast and prevent misinforming Americans about their history.

Arthur Schlesinger Sean Wilentz, Princeton University Michael Kazin, Georgetown University Lizbeth Cohen, Harvard University, Nicholas Salvatore, Cornell University; Ted Widmer, Brown University; Rick Perlstein, Independent Scholar; David Blight, Yale University; Eric Alterman, City University of New York. Maurice Isserman, Hamilton College (List in formation)

FROM THE ARCHIVES ---

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DFU SONG: Cabaret (giving Eric Alterman the respect he richly deserves)
DFU SONG PARODIES | 3-2003 | Lyrics, Doug from Upland

Posted on 03/18/2003 7:58:26 PM PST by doug from upland

MIDI - CABARET

He has been snippy and all out of sorts…at Bush he's really p*ssed
Poor Eric Alterman needs a new gynecologist

He has had migraines and he has had cramps…oh, why must these pains persist
Poor Eric Alterman needs a new gynecologist

Out of control…he's an a-hole
He writes his B.S. in the Nation…Eric needs new medication

Down on his kneepads when Clinton would call…he'd say "If you insist"
Poor Eric Alterman needs a new gynecologist

Out of control…he's an a-hole
He writes his B.S. in the Nation…Eric needs new medication

Girly man Eric warns FReepers they'll get…a slap with his limp wrist
Poor Eric Alterman needs a…he's desperate and needs right away
A new gynecologist
---------------------------------------------

My response from Eric Alterman of MSNBC
MSNBC.com | 3/18/03 | stanz

Posted on 03/18/2003 11:54:59 AM PST by stanz

The following is a response I received from Eric Alterman of MSNBC.com regarding a thread that got pulled recently which bashed the president. Maybe some of you will want to respond to Mr. Alterman.

I asked: Why not ask me or all my friends and family and all the members of Free Republic.com for our opinions?

His reply: because my guess is you're all idiots, but thanks

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Alterman needs a new gynecologist.

7 posted on 03/18/2003 12:01:37 PM PST by SMEDLEYBUTLER

from the huffington post
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/taylor-marsh/john-kerry-blasts-abcs-d_b_29017.html

"So, after Bill Clinton got through ripping ABC and Republicans, with a little help from his lawyers, I started thinking. What does John Kerry think about "Path to 9/11"? So I emailed my contact in Kerry's Senate office.

Then I'm working this morning, in the middle of a conference call actually, when my cell phone rings. It was John Kerry.

After quick pleasantries, Kerry took off. If Iger's office door was open at the time he could have heard Kerry all the way from Massachusetts. Talk about ticked. He let rip. Let's just say Kerry's fed up and he's not going to take it anymore. After our conversation, which lasted around 15 minutes, I got a statement from him that says it all.

What I find most stunning in all of this is that now five years after the real 9/11 - as if any fiction could somehow make more searing what each and every one of us lived with our own eyes and ears - is that we need less revisionism about the past and a hell of a lot more reality about what's going on now. Right now.
Instead of the fiction written to excuse the invasion of Iraq by exploiting the 3,000 mothers and fathers, sons and daughters who were lost that day -- they were attacked and killed not by Saddam Hussein but by Osama bin Laden - we need the truth.

Here's a little truth: The President pretends Iraq is the central front on the war on terror. It is not now, and never has been. His disastrous decisions have made Iraq a fuel depot for terror - fanning the flames of conflict around the world.

The terrorists are not on the run. Worldwide, terrorist acts are at an all-time high, more than tripling between 2004 and 2005. Al Qaeda has spawned a vast and decentralized network operating in 65 countries, most of them joining since 9/11. The Taliban now controls entire portions of southern Afghanistan, and just across the border Pakistan is just one coup away from becoming a radical jihadist state with nuclear weapons. The Middle East is more unstable than it has been in decades. Hezbollah flags fly from rooftops in Shiia slums of Sadr City and Iran is rebuilding Southern Lebanon. We have an Iraqi Prime Minister sustained in power by our forces, who will not speak against the Hezbollah terrorists, who will not say that Israel has a right to exist, and who will not condemn the Iranian nuclear program, who will not even as a national leader support the national army over the Shiite militia. In other words, the Iraq government that the administration cites as the front-line force in the fight against terrorism won't even take our side when we are fighting terrorists. No American soldier should be asked to stand up for an Iraqi government that won't stand up for the values and interests that draw them into battle every day. Oh, and the 9/11 commission recently gave our government a failing grade on implementing intelligence reforms.

I love watching movies, but with the world looking the way it is right now I think this is a good time to stick with just the facts. After Iraq, we've all had enough fiction to last a lifetime."

Senator John Kerry

~~~~~~~~~~~~
From the Daily Kos website, here are some powerful ways to get the pressure happening:

Call Disney at 1-818-560-1000 or 1-818-460-7477.

Call ABC at 1-212-456-7777 or 1-818-560-1000.

Please be polite, but firm, regarding why you find lying to the public about 9/11 to be offensive.

Steve Jobs is a major shareholder and board member at Disney. So it's not a big surprise that the movie is going to be available for free on iTunes. It certainly couldn't hurt to put a call into Apple's headquarters, to let them know you don't appreciate their willingness to disseminate this hateful fiction: (408) 996-1010 (if anyone has a better contact number/e-mail/fax for Apple, please put it in the comments).

And don't leave out Senator George Mitchell, Disney's Chairman of the Board:
T: (212) 335-4600
T: (212) 335-4500
F: (212) 335-4605
george.mitchell@dlapiper.com

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