Extended Essay 2

Bill Schaff

Professor Leake

Writ 1120

3/9/13

Is Torture Accepted?

             December 14, 2012. Andrew Sullivan posted the first article about the torture scene in the movie “Zero Dark Thirty”. The story starts with Sullivan talking about how the scene provides proof that torture was actually used to find Osama Bin Laden. In Sullivan’s article, he talks about how the government uses the term “enhanced interrogation” and up until this point, we had no idea what that meant. Sullivan explains that this movie actually proves to us that torture was used and this occasion was an exception to the law against torture. In the early stages of this story, there is actually no controversy over the torture scene itself. The story starts out with Sullivan trying to explain that torture was used to find Bin Laden contrary to what the government previously revealed. The second thing that Sullivan explains is how in trying to capture Bin Laden, we actually became like him. Not in the sense of mass killings but rather through the methods used to find and kill Bin Laden. Sullivan explains how our government during the time of Bush/Cheney was terribly run. Sullivan notes, “And the truth is that this country was run by war criminals who have yet to be brought to justice in the way their underlings have been,” (Sullivan). He is not upset over the scene in the movie but rather the reality of what our government did. This story started as a way to relate the movie to real life. People reading this article would be convinced that torture was actually used. As much as people already thought that torture was used, reading this article would prove to them that it actually was. Also, the story started out as a way to accuse government officials of what they did. Before this movie was released, there was no proof that torture was used but an individual reading this article would now understand what our government actually did.

            February 4, 2013. Fordham University made the next change in this story. This article was posted in the Fordham University’s school newspaper and was written by a student named Patrick Verel. The story is now taking a turn to the controversy over the actual torture scene in the movie. This article is talking about how the movie is misleading. In the opening scene of the movie, the first screen is one that says, “This film is based on first hand accounts”, and then goes into the torture scene (Verel). A man named Ali Soufan, who was a FBI special agent, talks about how torture was never actually used in finding Bin Laden. This story is now taking a turn from accusing people for what happened to expert’s opinions on the topic. People are now more concerned whether or not the torture actually happened rather than what is shown in a movie. This change in focus happens for a couple reasons but the main one is the source that published the article. Instead of being published on a blog where it is fill with personal opinions, this article is posted on a school website where a persons title matter. The author wants opinions from people who are actually knowledgeable in the field instead of a blogger with no background in torture. The story is now turning into how people disapprove of the torture scene.

            February 7, 2013. Reuters.com takes this story to its next stage, a fact based article. The author Hermon Schwartz talks about in his article how there was actually no torture in real life. Schwartz explains, “The Senate Intelligence Committee has completed a 6,000-page report, based on a three-year investigation and 6 million pages of CIA records, that flatly declares that “enhanced interrogation techniques” played no role in the bin Laden killing and are of no value,” (Schwartz). The facts that are being published proclaim that torture was actually never even used in finding Bin Laden. Now in the progression of this story, people are interested in the facts. Before now, there were no facts found about the torture scene so people could only rely on personal accounts. Now that facts are coming out, individuals are much more concerned with that facts of the event because they are more reliable. A person reading this article would believe what it is saying more than previous articles because of the facts provided.

            Another thing that Schwartz brings up in his article is the history of torture in shows. Schwartz talks about how the TV show “24” made individuals actually think torture is a good thing. The show portrays torture as a positive and reliable way to get information but this is wrong. Torture is brutal, nasty, and provides as much false information as it does true information (Schwartz). This is one reason why the controversy started in the first place. When people saw the movie, they went into with a perceived image of what torture is and when they saw how “Zero Dark Thirty” portrayed it; it clashed with what they originally thought. People are now looking for facts to come out of this story to prove what they originally thought or to disprove it.

            February 19, 2013. The Los Angeles Times posted an article on this story but with a completely different view on the topic. Now the focus has changed from the torture scene controversy to how the movie will be affected at the up coming Oscars. When the movie was being reviewed, it was rated incredibly high. Reviewers actually said, “Zero Dark Thirty will win best picture” (Zeitchik). They had no doubt that this movie would win best picture but also numerous other awards. After it opened in theaters and people started questioning the torture scene, that all changed. “The film's road to awards-season glory then took one of the sharpest turns in recent Oscar memory. Its wild ride offers a telling portrait of the 21st-century news cycle and how it can play havoc with a studio's carefully laid campaign,” (Zeitchik). The author of this article explains how all of the criticism that the movie received killed its chances of winning an Oscar award. This story has now jumped from a demand for opinions and facts to how it relates with current events. A person reading this article would actually be playing into what it is saying. Most people had not thought of how this movie would do at the Oscars but now that they have read this article, they will not vote for it to win an award. This is a perfect example of how a news story can influence people’s opinions. The story is now turning into how it relates to current events.

            February 26, 2013. The story yet again takes another turn in what people are writing about it. On Real Clear Politics, Debra Saunders explains how it’s interesting that the torture scene brings up controversy but not the actual killing of Bin Laden. She finds it very interesting that people didn’t comment about the killing in the movie. Both the torture scene and the actual killing of Bin Laden are dealing with some of the most wanted people in this country and most people would agree that we needed to do something about them. When something was actually done to find Bin Laden, people got upset about it but did not even think twice about killing a man. This change was prompted by the fact that the Oscars were now over. People are now interested in the morals of the movie. Instead of just analyzing one scene, individuals are now picking apart the entire movie. A person who would read this article would now question more than just the torture scene. Because the initial hype of the scene is gone, people are stepping back to check the morality of the entire movie.

            February 27, 2013. The Atlantic published an article that would finally lay this story to rest. Joshua Phillip talks about how this movie will be remembered. Phillip explains when people bring up “Zero Dark Thirty” in the future, the first thing that will come into their mind is the torture scene, people are going to focus solely on this one scene rather than the entire movie. While yes the movie is about the killing of Bin Laden, that is not what the press covered so that is not what people will remember about it. The article has now taken its final turn to how it will be remembered. Again, a person reading this article would actually help what the article is saying. By reading this article and seeing what they predict it will be remembered by will actually make the reader remember the movie by that.

            The movie “Zero Dark Thirty” was reviewed to be the best movie of the year but this was not the case when it opened to the public. Public outrage about a scene in the movie, the torture scene, crippled the movies chances of winning an award at the Oscars and that is what it is going to be remembered by. This all has to do with the way the story traveled through the press. In just a couple of months, this story made a rollercoaster ride on what people were writing about it. Starting with Sullivan on December 14 talking about how this movie proves what the term “enhanced interrogation” really means. Then on February 4, Fordham University gets an X-FBI agent to talk about what he thought about it and how he claims that no torture was used. Next, on February 7, Schwartz finds facts to back up what he is saying rather than just what people thought about it. On February 19, the article takes a huge turn to how it will do at the up coming Oscars. People are not interested anymore on the scene itself but rather how it will affect the awards it will receive. Then on February 26, Saunders looks at the movie as a whole and questions why only the torture scene is in question and not the entire movie. Lastly, on February 27, the story is coming to an end when Philip talks about what it will be remembered by. As stories pass through time and the press, everything changes and there is no way to know what will happen next with stories. Current events and new facts will always keep articles changing through the press.

Works Cited

Phillip, Joshua E. The Atlantic. 27 Feb. 2013. Web. 1 Mar. 2013. <http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2013/02/the-real-legacy-of-zero-dark-thirty-will-be-in-interrogation-rooms/273576/>.

Saunders, Debra. Real Clear Politics. 26 Feb. 2013. Web. 1 Mar. 2013. <http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2013/02/26/in_denial_over_zero_dark_thirty_117164.html>.

Schwartz, Herman. Reuters. 7 Feb. 2013. Web. 1 Mar. 2013. <http://blogs.reuters.com/great-debate/2013/02/07/brennan-zero-dark-thirty-and-the-torture-firestorm/>.

Sullivan, Andrew. The Dish. 14 Dec. 2012. Web. 1 Mar. 2013. <http://dish.andrewsullivan.com/2012/12/14/the-torture-narrative/>.

Verel, Patrick. Fordham University. 4 Feb. 2013. Web. 1 Mar. 2013. <http://www.fordham.edu/campus_resources/enewsroom/inside_fordham/february_4_2013/news/two_thumbs_down_for__90176.asp>.

Zeitchik, Steven, and Nicole Sperling. Los Angeles Times. 19 Feb. 2013. Web. 1 Mar. 2013. <http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/moviesnow/la-et-mn-zero-dark-oscar-20130219,0,2300597.story>.