United States
“Post-truth” and fake news: what about the rest of the world?
It is the news media’s major preoccupation – how can journalists best serve audiences in a world riddled with misinformation and ‘alternative facts’, and when the President of the United States makes baseless claims and labels accurate reporting as “fake news”? We will discuss how journalists new to these challenges learn from reporters elsewhere in the world who contend daily with misinformation and state hostility. This event, held to mark World Press Freedom Day 2017, will bring together journalists from a selection of countries to discuss these issues and explain how they are dealing with the “post-truth” environment.
Elections and Rising Tension: Iran and the US
The election of President Donald Trump has raised tensions between the US and Iran just as an intense power struggle plays out ahead of Iran’s presidential election in May. Ahead of the election we will reflect on Iran under President Rouhani and where the country’s international relations are headed.
Unreported World Preview: North Korea’s Reality TV Stars + Panel Discussion
Correspondent Seyi Rhodes and Director Kate Hardie-Buckley report from the set of the hit South Korean TV show that’s made defectors from North Korea into TV stars. More than 400 defectors have been interviewed on the show, and their stories chart the very latest about life under Kim Jong-un. For many South Koreans, it’s become a key source of information about their northern neighbour.
Screening: Don’t Tell Anyone + Q&A
Angy Rivera has lived in the U.S. with a dangerous secret: she is undocumented. Now 24, after years of living in the shadows, battling a complex and inequitable immigration system, and facing an uncertain future, Angy joins pro-immigration rallies and proclaims she is “undocumented and proud” – her compelling journey places a human face on the current national immigration debate.
Screening – All Governments Lie: Truth, Deception, And The Spirit of I.F. Stone + Q&A
Independent journalists like Amy Goodman, Glenn Greenwald, Jeremy Scahill, and Matt Taibbi are changing the face of journalism, providing investigative, adversarial alternatives to mainstream, corporate news outlets. All Governments Lie follows them as they expose government and corporate deception – just as the groundbreaking independent journalist I.F. Stone did decades ago.
The Editor’s View with Roy Greenslade: Tackling Fake News
As the public respond to rapid political changes in Europe and America, a digital-age quandary is emerging around editorial policies of newspapers during times of political transition. In a new series of exclusive talks hosted by journalist Roy Greenslade, we are bringing together today’s leading news editors to discuss, directly with their readers, issues related to editorial policies and press freedom in an era of polarising politics.
What Does Trump’s Presidency Mean for the Rest of the World?
In one of the most dramatic political upsets in modern American history, Donald Trump has defeated Hillary Clinton to become President Elect of the United States. Trump’s presidency means radical change in America’s foreign policy. How will campaign talk compare to real world policy?
GroundTruth Presents: America’s Election and the Media in an Age of Distrust
The GroundTruth Project, a Boston-based non-profit news organisation, is dedicated to supporting the next generation of international correspondents. On the eve of the US election, GroundTruth founders Charles Sennott and Gary Knight look forward to introducing GroundTruth to the London media community. We ask: How much credibility has the media lost in this election? Where does journalism fit in the polarised political and social landscape? What role should the media play to improve discourse?
Fully Booked – US Election Night 2016 at the Frontline Club
As Americans go to the polls we invite you to join us to follow the live coverage of the 58th US Presidential election night. In what is set to be a tight race we will have coverage from Sky News and other networks as results unfold state by state. Tickets are £5 standard and free for Frontline Club members, however booking online is required.
The Frontline Club and Bertha DocHouse Present: Jim – The James Foley Story
Seen through the lens of filmmaker Brian Oakes, Foley’s close childhood friend, Jim: The James Foley Story takes us from small-town New England to the adrenaline-fuelled front lines of Libya and Syria, where photojournalist James (Jim) Foley pushed the limits of danger to report on the plight of civilians impacted by war. Brilliantly constructed with unparalleled access, Jim is a harrowing chronicle of bravery, compassion, and pain at the dawn of a new World War against ISIS.
Film Series: U.S. Under the Lens
Leading up to the 2016 presidential elections, our U.S. Under the Lens film series presents bold new documentaries tackling the most polarising and hotly-debated issues set to determine the outcome of the 2016 campaign.
U.S. Under the Lens: National Bird + Panel Discussion
This screening will be followed by a panel discussion with director Sonia Kennenbeck and others.
National Bird follows the dramatic journey of three whistleblowers who are determined to break the silence around one of the most controversial current affairs issues of our time: the secret U.S. drone war. At the centre of the film are three U.S. military veterans. Grappling with guilt over their participation in the drone programme, they decide to speak out publicly in spite of the possible consequences. As their stories take dramatic turns, this not-to-miss film gives a balanced insight into the U.S. drone programme through the eyes of veterans and survivors – connecting their stories as never seen before.
U.S. Under the Lens: Do Not Resist + Q&A
Do Not Resist is an urgent and powerful exploration of the rapid militarisation of the police in the United States. Opening on startling on-the-scene footage in Ferguson, Missouri, the film then broadens its scope to present scenes from across the country. Through keen and thoughtful observances, director Craig Atkinson deftly presents the characters and stories that comprise this pressing issue. The result reveals a rare and surprising look into the increasingly disturbing realities of American police culture.
U.S. Under the Lens: Under the Gun + Panel Discussion
This screening will be followed by a panel discussion with director Stephanie Soechtig and others.
Under the Gun examines the events and people who have kept the U.S. gun debate fierce and the progress slow, even as gun deaths and mass shootings continue to increase. Through the lens of families impacted by the mass shootings in Newtown, Aurora, Isla Vista and Tucson, as well as those who experience daily gun violence in Chicago, the documentary looks at why politicians are finding it difficult to act and what is being done at the state and local levels. The film is executive produced and narrated by Katie Couric and directed by Stephanie Soechtig.
U.S. Under the Lens: TRAPPED + Q&A
At this very moment, a woman’s reproductive rights in the United States are not clear. Since 2010, state legislatures have passed more than 250 laws restricting abortion clinics and their doctors. From mandating the width of hallways to requiring physicians to have active admitting privileges at nearby hospitals, these measures are forcing clinics across the country to shut down in epidemic numbers. Lawyer-turned-acclaimed-filmmaker Dawn Porter picks up the plight of the doctors and clinic operators along with the countless women relying on these facilities to uphold their legal right to safe abortion.
“Times are Changing” But Little has Changed for Ordinary Cubans
Whilst institutional changes in Cuban foreign relations make headlines in global media, the daily-lives of ordinary people on the island are yet to see huge improvements.
Trump vs Clinton: Let the Race for the White House Commence
The candidates are all but decided and the race for the White House has begun. With six months of fierce campaigning ahead in what is set to be one of the most contentious US presidential races in recent history, we will be discussing what the deciding factors will be. Will Republicans be able to unify behind Donald Trump? What does the nomination of such a divisive figure mean for the future of the party? Can Hilary Clinton defy the approval ratings and garner popular support? Join us as we debate the key issues facing both candidates.
Screening: Shorts at the Frontline Club
Join us for an evening of short documentaries from different parts of the world, covering a wide range of topics. Shorts at the Frontline Club showcases moving, striking and funny films, exploring the diverse faces of documentary filmmaking.
Inside Obama’s White House
On Tuesday 15 March the Frontline Club hosted a screening of the first episode from new BBC Two series Inside Obama’s White House. It was followed by a Q&A with series producer Norma Percy and director Paul Mitchell, moderated by author and Guardian journalist Jonathan Freedland.
Screening: The Divide + Q&A
Inspired by Richard Wilkinson and Kate Pickett’s best-selling book The Spirit Level, Katharine Round’s accomplished debut feature illustrates a more personal account of how inequality shapes our societies. The film travels across the world and into individual lives to see how broad economic shifts have shaped not only our physical circumstances, but also the way we think and what we believe in.
BBC Preview Screening: Inside Obama’s White House + Q&A
This screening will be followed by a Q&A with series producer Norma Percy and producer/director Paul Mitchell, moderated by journalist and author Jonathan Freedland.
In this landmark series by Norma Percy, Brian Lapping and Paul Mitchell, four one-hour programmes capture key moments when policy was made, including contribution from Obama’s Chief of Staff and insiders within the administration.
Sicario: Mexican Drug Cartels & the US-led War on Drugs
Journalist and writer Ed Vulliamy was joined by Empire film critic Dan Jolin on Friday 5 February at the Frontline Club, to watch and discuss Denis Villeneuve’s Sicario. The Academy Award-nominated film, the title of which translates to ‘assassin’, tells the story of the inextricably linked worlds of US law enforcement agencies and Mexican drug cartels.
Screening: Sicario + Q&A
The Frontline Club is delighted to host a screening of Dennis Villeneuve’s Sicario to coincide with the BluRay and DVD release of the film this February. This screening will be followed by a discussion with journalist Ed Vulliamy.
After rising through the ranks of her male-dominated profession, idealistic FBI agent Kate Macer (Emily Blunt) receives a top assignment. Recruited by mysterious government official Matt Graver (Josh Brolin), Kate joins a task force for the escalating war against drugs.
Al Jazeera Preview Screening: Cuba for Sale + Q&A
This screening will be followed by a Q&A with reporters Juliana Ruhfus, Seamus Mirodan and others.
Cuba was the first communist state to be created in the western hemisphere – it’s also the last one standing. The President insists that these measures are designed to preserve, rather than dismantle, Cuban socialism. But can he successfully open up the economy without betraying the promise of a classless society upon which the Cuban state was built? Juliana Ruhfus and Seamus Mirodan investigate.
Screening: Guantanamo’s Child + Q&A
This screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Michelle Shepard and others.
Omar Khadr, a Canadian citizen who was captured by American forces in Afghanistan in 2002 and spent a decade imprisoned at Guantanamo Bay, tells his own story in this documentary portrait from directors Patrick Reed and Michelle Shepard.
Cartel Land: Violence and Vigilantism in Mexico
By Ratha Lehall On Friday 4 September, the Frontline Club hosted a screening of Cartel Land, a fearless and revealing documentary that portrays the violent influence of Mexican drug cartels and the vigilante groups fighting to end their reign of terror. The screening was followed by a Q&A with the film’s director Matthew Heineman.
Dorothea Lange: Grab a Hunk of Lightning
By Helena Kardova Dorothea Lange introduced a tenderness to documentary photography, which has since elevated her images to an iconic status and pushed US citizens to come to terms with darker aspects of their collective history. On Monday 20 July 2015, the Frontline Club hosted a preview screening of the PBS documentary Dorothea Lange: Grab a Hunk of Lightning. The […]
Screening: Welcome to Leith + Q&A
In September 2012, the tiny prairie town of Leith, North Dakota, saw its population of 24 grow by one. Trouble had come to town. The newcomer was Craig Cobb, a notorious white supremacist. Quietly snapping up plots of land, he planned to take over the town government and establish Cobbsville, a haven for white separatists.
This screening will be followed by a Q&A with directors Michael Beach Nichols and Christopher K. Walker.
Preview Screening: Dead When I Got Here + Q&A
This screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Mark Aitken and journalist Ed Vulliamy.
Compassion and self-affirmation are discovered by a man as he manages a mental asylum run by its own patients in Juárez, Mexico – the world’s most violent city. Juárez, a city that borders the United States, is at once a place of diverse culture and tradition and a site of desperation and rampant poverty.
Drones and the ‘War on Terror’
By Francis Churchill Drone warfare has become the defining policy of Obama’s war on terror. Unmanned aerial vehicles provide a unique solution to the unpopular politics of war, granting the United States the ability to take out targets in the remotest parts of the world without any risk to American life. Drone, directed by Tonje Hessen […]