"The War of the World" - Talk Back on the Blog
As some of you may know, there's been some controversy surrounding the series "The War of the World: A New History of the 20th Century". Part two of the three-part series, "A Tainted Victory", airs this evening at 10pm. We anticipate strong reactions to some of the opinions voiced in the program. In fact, some of the staff here at WTCI who have previewed tonight's program are troubled by some of the conclusions drawn by the program's host, historian Niall Ferguson.
However, because we believe in diversity of opinion and we stand by our opposition to the censorship of ideas, we've decided to continue airing the program. We hope you'll watch the program and offer your comments here at the WTCI blog. Just click on the word "comments" below to share your thoughts and to read the comments of others who've watched the program. Dialogue is essential to our understanding of any issue and we're glad to provide a forum for this discussion and others.
-Peter G. DeLynn, Vice President of Production
Michael C. Varner
The author of this so-called documentary draws blatantly inaccurate moral "similarities" between the axis and allied powers. His arguments assume that the allied powers had palpable alternatives to alliances with Stalin and the tactics by which the war was conducted near its close. Interestingly, he fails to mention overtures made by the United States government to Japan warning of its new weapon and asking for surrender in an effort to save Japanese lives prior to the bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima. Though it is not surprising, I find it reprehensible that PBS and specifically WTCI would air such a program without specific rebuttals to the false claims made. What will you air next: a "documentary" that denies the Holocaust in the interest of "diversity of opinion"? There are quite accurate and extremely balanced documentary film series that cover this horrible war completely. You have a responsibility to education.
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