Zero Dark Thirty

Dear Friends, Zero Dark Thirty is a critically acclaimed film nominated for many awards. Unfortunately, the filmmakers chose to imply – inaccurately – that torture leads to reliable intelligence. The movie opens in theaters nationwide on Friday, January 11. In advance of the film’s opening, we invite you to attend NRCAT’s specially organized webinar on Thursday, January 10, at 12:30 p.m. EST to learn about our new “Fact Not Fiction” campaign.During the webinar, NRCAT will describe the various elements of the campaign and will explain how you can participate. Please sign up for the webinar here and urge people from other congregations to join us. The major thrust of the campaign will be to urge more than 300 congregations to show NRCAT’s short filmEnding U.S.-Sponsored Torture Forever before June 30, 2013. We will also encourage people who see Zero Dark Thirty to watch NRCAT’s film. You can view NRCAT’s film online at www.nrcat.org/fact-not-fiction, and later this month we will add an updated discussion guide and other helpful materials.  We also encourage people to distribute leaflets at local theaters sharing the facts about torture with people who are going to watch Zero Dark Thirty.  If you would like to learn more, please visit our website or email Paz Artaza-Regan, our Director of Program and Outreach.  Please join us on the webinar to learn how you can help us make this campaign a national success and to share with us any ideas you may have. Registration is limited to the first 100 people - sign up today. We can’t stop people from watching Zero Dark Thirty, but we can share the facts about torture.  Thank you for your support!  Linda Gustitus, President Rev. Richard Killmer, Executive Director

Questions? Please email campaign@nrcat.org National Religious Campaign Against Torture: www.tortureisamoralissue.org

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Published: 27 December, 2012, 17:44

The News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch has warned his followers on Twitter that the US Oscar contender focusing on the decade-long manhunt for Osama bin Laden, Zero Dark Thirty, "could inflame the Arab world."

­The media mogul tweeted that he "just saw Zero Dark Thirty" directed by James Cameron’s ex- wife, the Oscar-winner Kathryn Bigelow. The film received mixed reviews when it arrived in theaters across America for its depiction of torture, among other controversial issues.

Describing it as a “gripping film” Murdoch pointed out that the “coming debate on torture should include all sides, but won't."

Last week the acting head of the CIA, Michael Morell, wrote a statement to CIA employees to “put into some context” the drama whose title is a military terminology for half past midnight, the time at which the hunt of Osama bin Laden by the CIA was scheduled to take place.

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The movie, which chronicles the hunt for al-Qaeda terrorist leader Osama bin Laden, has come under intense criticism from Washington. The CIA denounced the film, calling the interrogation scenes “a dramatization, not a realistic portrayal of facts.” Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Carl Levin (D-Mich.) also complained about the film’s “grossly inaccurate and misleading” torture scenes.

Critics claim that the film falsely depicts the CIA’s use of torture methods as an effective technique in capturing terrorist leaders. But Director Kathryn Bigelow and screenwriter Mark Boal claim that the movie accurately portrays the events based on information they received from the CIA, putting the agency in an uncomfortable position.

The Senate Intelligence Committee, headed by Feinstein, is now launching an investigation to determine whether or not the film’s director and screenwriter were granted “inappropriate” access to classified information by the CIA.

The committee is also trying to determine if the CIA was responsible for the film’s depiction of torture as a key method in the capture of bin Laden, which it claims is false information.

The CIA’s use of torture

Message from the Acting Director: "Zero Dark Thirty"

Statement to Employees from Acting Director Michael Morell: "Zero Dark Thirty"

December 21, 2012

I would not normally comment on a Hollywood film, but I think it important to put Zero Dark Thirty, which deals with one of the most significant achievements in our history, into some context. The film, which premiered this week, addresses the successful hunt for Usama Bin Ladin that was the focus of incredibly dedicated men and women across our Agency, Intelligence Community, and military partners for many years. But in doing so, the film takes significant artistic license, while portraying itself as being historically accurate.

What I want you to know is that Zero Dark Thirty is a dramatization, not a realistic portrayal of the facts. CIA interacted with the filmmakers through our Office of Public Affairs but, as is true with any entertainment project with which we interact, we do not control the final product.

It would not be practical for me to walk through all the fiction in the film, but let me highlight a few aspects that particularly underscore the extent to which the film departs from reality.

the National Defense Authorization Act of 2013

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mike.mcauliff@huffingtonpost.com

 

NDAA Indefinite Detention Provision Mysteriously Stripped From Bill

WASHINGTON -- Congress stripped a provision Tuesday from a defense bill that aimed to shield Americans from the possibility of being imprisoned indefinitely without trial by the military. The provision was replaced with a passage that appears to give citizens little protection from indefinite detention.

The amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act of 2013 was added by Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), but there was no similar language in the version of the bill that passed the House, and it was dumped from the final bill released Tuesday after a conference committee from both chambers worked out a unified measure.

It declared that "An authorization to use military force, a declaration of war, or any similar authority shall not authorize the detention without charge or trial of a citizen or lawful permanent resident of the United States apprehended in the United States, unless an Act of Congress expressly authorizes such detention."