This project uses film and the Internet in an effort to inform and galvanise the public to think critically about the transparency of the media enterprise that exists to inform them. The thesis of the film is that the US media uncritically and superficially covered the war in Iraq, supporting President George W. Bush and his administration's positions rather than challenging the war. This message is meant to motivate media consumers to question both the openness of this information exchange and the motives of those (journalists) initiating it.

The tone of this project is one of advocacy and challenge. Filmmaker Danny Schechter offers such incendiary statements as "There may have been no Weapons of Mass Destruction in Iraq, but there were media Weapons of Mass Deception" and describes his film as one that "the major media companies do not want you to see". Schechter says he "self-embedded" himself in his living room to monitor media coverage by tracking television coverage of the war on a daily basis. What emerged from his investigation was a book titled "Embedded: Weapons of Mass Deception", summarised here, and the WMD film. Featuring footage from inside Iraq, WMD tracks the media war through February 2004 in an effort to unearth issues that Schechter claims are not covered (and often covered up) by the media system.

The film is part of a grassroots campaign to get the public involved in the questions raised in the film, and to engage in learning and dialogue online and in schools and communities. Screenings of the film have been held in communities, on campuses, and at festivals; members of the public are urged to help get the film into theatres in their towns, to invite Schechter to their community for a speaking engagement, and to take advantage of the various outreach tools and interactive features offered on the
WMD website, such as a downloadable WMD song called "MEDIA WARS (The More You Know, The Less You Watch)".

Media literacy education is a key component of this initiative. Schechter devised a 14-page teacher's guide [PDF] in partnership with Ithaca College's Project Look Sharp, "whose mission is to integrate media literacy and critical thinking throughout the K-12 curriculum." The film is structured by analytical chapters that break down the structure of the US news media and the interests behind what viewers see so that educators have the option of playing it chapter-by-chapter. The teacher's guide includes discussion questions tailored to each chapter, with suggested responses. It is focused on getting students to analyse the film itself and to ask tough questions about the media industry, the US-Iraq conflict, and the quest for peace in the Middle East.

Conflict, Media Literacy.

In Schechter's words, "For those of us watching the coverage, war was more of a spectacle, an around the clock global media marathon, pitting media outlets against each other in ways that distorted truth and raised as many questions about the methods of TV news, as it did the armed intervention it was covering - and it some cases - promoting." He stresses that, "Not only has the war drained resources for development but it has shown that our media can be mobilized behind jingoism, not journalism."

WMD has won awards including Best Documentary Award at Durban International Film Festival, Maysles Brothers Award for Best Documentary at the Starz Denver International Film Festival, and Best Documentary Award at the 2004 Austin Film Festival.

Click here to download a complete script of the film in PDF format. Click here for information about how to purchase a DVD copy of the film.