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Video Details

Frontline

Grade Levels: 9 - 12
Core Subject(s): Social Studies
Website: https://www.uen.org/emedia
Usage rights: Download and retain personal copies in perpetuity.

Availability information for this program

Episodes:

  • Frontline. A Class Divided.

    This classic program presents the long-term effects of racial stereotyping in schools and suggests how new approaches can make a positive difference with students and teachers. Following Martin Luther King Jr?s assassination in 1968, Jane Elliott wanted to show her 3rd grade students what discrimination feels like, and what it can do to people. Elliott divided her class by eye color -- those with blue eyes and those with brown. On the first day, the blue-eyed children were told they were smarter, nicer, neater, and better than those with brown eyes. On the second day, the roles were reversed. Elliott repeated the exercise with her new classes in the following year. The third time, in 1970, cameras were present. Fourteen years later, FRONTLINE's "A Class Divided" chronicled a mini-reunion of that 1970 third-grade class. As young adults, Elliott's former students watch themselves on film and talk about the impact Elliott's lesson in bigotry has had on their lives and attitudes.

    Length: 00:56:29
  • Frontline. A Company of Soldiers.

    FRONTLINE reports from inside the U.S. Army's 8th Cavalry Regiment -- Dog Company -- stationed in south Baghdad, documenting the day-to-day realities of a life-and-death military mission that also includes rebuilding Iraq's infrastructure, promoting its economic development, and building positive relations with its people. At first, there was a surge in violence as an insurgent group launched a series of ambushes and attacks in Dog Company's sector. Then, after the Iraqi National Guard found a large weapons cache near one of the mosques which had been at the heart of the many ambushes, the violence in Dog Company's sector began to die down, and the unit returned to the challenging task of nation-building in a hostile land.

    Length: 01:26:57
  • Frontline: A Jew Among the Germans

    As a young Jewish boy trying to survive the Holocaust in Poland, Marian Marzynski felt nothing but terror at the sound of the German language. For years, he lived with this fear of the people who had invaded his country and killed much of his family. When the German government announced that it was planning to build a "Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe," Marzynski decided it was finally time to go to Berlin himself. Over several years of filming, Marzynski encounters artists, architects, and everyday Germans, who wrestle with the big questions of guilt, responsibility, and memory. He also meets a young, "third generation" of Germans who are looking for a way to keep the Holocaust in living memory. "The offspring of the perpetrators complain that they grew up without any of the victims in their sight," Marzynski says. "Now I am here and am ready to extend my hand."

    Length: 00:56:58
  • Frontline. Assault on Gay America.

    In February 1999, in Sylacauga, Alabama, 30-year-old computer programmer Bill Jack Gaither was murdered, the victim of a violent hate crime. The accused killer, a known white supremacist, testified he killed Gaither because he was "queer." Why have gays like Gaither and Matthew Shepard become the targets of such brutality? FRONTLINE correspondent Forrest Sawyer explores the roots of homophobia in America -- as a catalyst for hate crimes and as a phenomenon that permeates our society -- and asks how these attitudes, beliefs and fears contribute to the recent rise in violence against gays.

    Length: 00:56:47
  • Frontline. Bigger Than Enron.

    The meteoric rise and stunning collapse of Enron caused many to question why the corporate oversight system that was supposed to protect investors never sounded any alarms about the company's dubious financial underpinnings. In the 1990s, more than 700 U.S. companies were forced to correct misleading financial statements as a result of accounting failures, lapses, or outright fraud. Together with Enron -- the largest corporate bankruptcy in U.S. history -- these failures have cost investors an estimated $200 billion. This program explores how market deregulation and conflicts of interest between analysts and the companies they were reporting on eroded the system of controls designed to protect stockholders from investment fraud.

    Length: 00:57:07
  • Frontline. Can you Afford to Retire?

    Can You Afford to Retire? reports that the past quarter century has seen a massive shift in the cost and responsibility for retirement saving from corporations to employees. One major driver behind this shift is a corporate bankruptcy strategy that enables companies to terminate lifetime pension programs.

    Length: 00:57:00
  • Frontline: China in the Red

    This FRONTLINE documentary chronicles three pivotal years in China's historic evolution from a rigid Communist society to an exploding market economy. But the economic reforms that have brought the world's most populous nation economic prosperity and world-power status now threaten the livelihood of many Chinese workers. "China in the Red" follows 10 Chinese citizens caught up in the social and economic transformation, and through their stories reveals a nation in flux and a people struggling to survive in a world they never dreamed would exist.

    Length: 01:56:50
  • Frontline. Country Boys Part01.

    Filmed over three years (1999-2002), "Country Boys" tracks the dramatic stories of Chris and Cody from ages 15 to 18. This film witnesses two boys' struggles to overcome the poverty and family dysfunction of their childhood in a quest for a brighter future. This film also offers unexpected insights into a forgotten corner of rural America that is at once isolated and connected, a landscape dotted with roughshod trailer homes and wired with DSL.

    Length: 01:53:22
  • Frontline. Country Boys Part02.

    Filmed over three years (1999-2002), "Country Boys" tracks the dramatic stories of Chris and Cody from ages 15 to 18. This film witnesses two boys' struggles to overcome the poverty and family dysfunction of their childhood in a quest for a brighter future. This film also offers unexpected insights into a forgotten corner of rural America that is at once isolated and connected, a landscape dotted with roughshod trailer homes and wired with DSL.

    Length: 01:51:12
  • Frontline. Country Boys Part03.

    Filmed over three years (1999-2002), "Country Boys" tracks the dramatic stories of Chris and Cody from ages 15 to 18. This film witnesses two boys' struggles to overcome the poverty and family dysfunction of their childhood in a quest for a brighter future. This film also offers unexpected insights into a forgotten corner of rural America that is at once isolated and connected, a landscape dotted with roughshod trailer homes and wired with DSL.

    Length: 01:53:32
  • Frontline. Diet Wars.

    Americans spend $40 billion a year on books, products, and programs designed to help us lose weight. Today's dieters have a dizzying array of weight loss programs from which to choose - yet the underlying principles of these diets are often contradictory. Is low fat better than low-carb? Is Atkins the answer? And has the USDA Food Pyramid done more harm than good? Follow FRONTLINE correspondent Steve Talbot on his personal journey through the confusing variety of diet plans in his own attempt to lose weight.

    Length: 00:56:17
  • Frontline: Faith and Doubt at Ground Zero

    For many Americans, the destruction of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001 called more into question than just their own physical safety. For many people, the most difficult questions were not about politics, military strategy, or homeland security. They were questions about God, about evil, and about the potential for darkness within religion itself. This documentary begins with memories of that tragic day in 2001, then sets out on a quest to find out how peoples' faith has been challenged, and how they are coping with difficult questions of good and evil, religion and apostasy, and the frailty of human life.

    Length: 01:57:11
  • Frontline: From Jesus to Christ - The First Christians, Pt.1

    In this four-part special series, FRONTLINE chronicles the life of Jesus and the epic rise of Christianity, drawing on new and controversial historical evidence and challenging conventional notions to illuminate the origins of a faith.

    Length: 00:56:35
  • Frontline: From Jesus to Christ - The First Christians - Pt.2

    In this four-part special series, FRONTLINE chronicles the life of Jesus and the epic rise of Christianity, drawing on new and controversial historical evidence and challenging conventional notions to illuminate the origins of a faith.

    Length: 00:56:35
  • Frontline: From Jesus to Christ - The First Christians, Pt.3

    In this four-part special series, FRONTLINE chronicles the life of Jesus and the epic rise of Christianity, drawing on new and controversial historical evidence and challenging conventional notions to illuminate the origins of a faith.

    Length: 00:56:35
  • Frontline: From Jesus to Christ - The First Christians - Pt.4

    In this four-part special series, FRONTLINE chronicles the life of Jesus and the epic rise of Christianity, drawing on new and controversial historical evidence and challenging conventional notions to illuminate the origins of a faith.

    Length: 00:56:35
  • Frontline: Ghosts of Rwanda

    "Ghosts of Rwanda," a documentary report on the Rwandan genocide, examines the social, political, and diplomatic failures that converged to enable the genocide to occur. Through interviews with key government officials, diplomats, soldiers, and survivors of the slaughter, "Ghosts of Rwanda" presents groundbreaking, first-hand accounts of the genocide from those who lived it. This FRONTLINE program illustrates the failures that enabled one of the worst atrocities of the 20th century, the slaughter of 800,000 people, to take place unchallenged by the global community.

    Length: 01:56:59
  • Frontline: In Search of Al Qaeda - Ep.1, In Search of Al Qaeda

    What happened to Al Qaeda after the 9/11 attacks on America? In this episode, learn about the "Tribal belt" in Pakistan, the role it plays in supporting the Al Qaeda forces, and the risks that reporters take when they venture in the territory.

    Length: 00:57:01
  • Frontline: In Search of Al Qaeda Ep.2 - In Search of bin Laden

    What happened to Al Qaeda after 9/11? Where did its members find sanctuary? In this episode, learn about Osama Bin Laden, his motives, resources, and supporters.

    Length: 00:55:55
  • Frontline: In Search of Al Qaeda. Ep.3 - Looking for Answers

    What happened to Al Qaeda after 9/11? In this episode, learn how pockets of anti-American sympathizers in Egypt and Saudi Arabia played an important role in supporting Al Qaeda efforts.

    Length: 00:57:10
  • Frontline: In Search of Al Qaeda, Ep.4 - Son of Al Qaeda

    What happened to Al Qaeda after the 9/11 attack on America? In this episode, learn from one who was raised in Al Qaeda about what it is like to be raised in an environment where one's loyalty is more important than one's life.

    Length: 00:56:42
  • Frontline: In Search of Al Qaeda. Ep.7 - The Man Who Knew

    What happened to Al Qaeda after the 9/11 attacks on America? Where did its members find sanctuary? Has the network been scattered and rendered ineffective -- or are they regrouping and planning more attacks? In this episode, FRONTLINE gives an in-depth account of the FBI's role in addressing the terrorist attacks, and features commentary about the effectiveness of the organization.

    Length: 00:57:10
  • Frontline: In Search of Al Qaeda - Episode05 - Al Qaeda's New Front

    What happened to Al Qaeda after the 9/11 attack on America? In this episode, learn about the terrorist attacks Al Qaeda made in Madrid, Berlin, and elsewhere, begging the question: Who is next on the Al Qaeda agenda?

    Length: 00:56:49
  • Frontline: In Search of Al Qaeda - Episode06 - Chasing the Sleeper Cell

    What happened to Al Qaeda after the 9/11 attack on America? In this episode, take an inside look on how American forces tracked down and disabled an Al Qaeda sleeper cell right here on American soil.

    Length: 00:57:36
  • Frontline: Inside the Teenage Brain

    In "Inside the Teenage Brain," FRONTLINE chronicles how scientists are exploring the recesses of the brain and finding some new explanations for why adolescents behave the way they do. New neuroscience research has shown that a crucial part of the brain undergoes extensive changes during puberty -- precisely the time when the raging hormones often blamed for teen behavior begin to wreak havoc. These discoveries could change the way we parent, teach, or perhaps even understand our teenagers.

    Length: 00:56:24
  • Frontline: Is Wal-Mart Good for America?

    For Wal-Mart, China has become the cheapest, most reliable production platform in the world, the source of up to $25 billion in annual imports that help the company deliver everyday low prices. FRONTLINE explores the relationship between U.S. job losses and the American consumer's insatiable desire for bargains in "Is Wal-Mart Good for America?" Through interviews with retail executives, product manufacturers, economists, and trade experts, the program examines the growing controversy over the Wal-Mart way of doing business and asks whether a single retail giant has changed the American economy.

    Length: 00:56:57
  • Frontline. Karl Rove - The Architect.

    President George W. Bush called him "the architect" of his re-election victory. He has been Bush's chief strategist from the beginning, but Karl Rove is much more than a political guru -- he is also the single most powerful policy advisor in the White House. FRONTLINE traces the political history and modus operandi of the man who has been on the inside of every political and policy decision of the Bush administration.

    Length: 00:56:57
  • Frontline. Living Old.

    For the first time in American history, "the old old" -- those over 85 -- are now the fastest growing segment of the U.S. population. Medical advances have enabled an unprecedented number of Americans to live longer, healthier lives. But for millions of elderly, living longer can also mean a debilitating physical decline that often requires an immense amount of care. And just as more care is needed, fewer caregivers are available to provide it. In "Living Old," Frontline investigates this national crisis and explores the new realities of aging in America.

    Length: 00:56:57
  • Frontline. Rumsfeld's War.

    With the US Army deployed around the world, on constant alert in Afghanistan and taking casualties every day in Iraq, some officers say the army is on the verge of being "broken." The man responsible, according to some military officers, is a secretary of defense who came into the Pentagon determined to transform the shape of the military. In "Rumsfeld's War," FRONTLINE and The Washington Post join forces for the first time to investigate Donald Rumsfeld's contentious battle with the Pentagon bureaucracy to assert civilian control of the military and remake the way America fights.

    Length: 01:26:58
  • Frontline. So Much So Fast.

    What would you do if you were 29 years old and found out that you only had a few years to live? Stephen Heywood chose to get married, have a child and rebuild two houses while he was slowly losing control of his body's movement from a crippling disease.

    Length: 01:26:50
  • Frontline. Tax Me If You Can.

    The tax shelter was one of corporate America's biggest hidden profit centers in recent years. They have become so lucrative that last year it helped major U.S. companies cut their tax rate to just half of what they had historically paid, leaving individual taxpayers to make up the difference. The General Accounting Office estimates that illegitimate tax shelters cost the government more than $85 billion in recent years. FRONTLINE provides an inside look at how big corporations and wealthy individuals cut their taxes with intricate and abusive tax shelters and investigates the role of blue chip accounting firms in these secret deals.

    Length: 00:56:58
  • Frontline: The Age of AIDS, Ep.1

    On the 25th anniversary of the first diagnosed cases of AIDS, FRONTLINE examines one of the worst pandemics the world has ever known in "The Age of AIDS." After a quarter century of political denial and social stigma, of stunning scientific breakthroughs, bitter policy battles and inadequate prevention campaigns, HIV/AIDS continues to spread rapidly throughout much of the world, particularly in developing nations. To date, some 30 million people worldwide have already died of AIDS.

    Length: 01:56:50
  • Frontline: The Age of AIDS, Ep.2

    On the 25th anniversary of the first diagnosed cases of AIDS, FRONTLINE examines one of the worst pandemics the world has ever known in "The Age of AIDS." After a quarter century of political denial and social stigma, of stunning scientific breakthroughs, bitter policy battles and inadequate prevention campaigns, HIV/AIDS continues to spread rapidly throughout much of the world, particularly in developing nations. To date, some 30 million people worldwide have already died of AIDS.

    Length: 01:57:06
  • Frontline. The Dark Side.

    Amid revelations about faulty prewar intelligence and a scandal surrounding the indictment of the vice president's chief of staff and presidential adviser, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, FRONTLINE goes behind the headlines to investigate the internal war that was waged between the intelligence community and Richard Bruce Cheney, the most powerful vice president in the nation's history.

    Length: 01:27:01
  • Frontline. The Farmer's Wife Part01.

    Acclaimed filmmaker David Sutherland takes us deep inside the passionate, yet troubled, marriage of Juanita and Darrel Buschkoetter, a young farm couple in rural Nebraska facing the loss of everything they hold dear. Part 1 of "The Farmer's Wife" recounts the moving story of Juanita and Darrel's romantic love affair and begins the journey to the core of their emotional struggles, which have pushed their marriage to the brink. Darrel and Juanita tell their own story, in their own words, without the intrusion of a narrator. It unfolds before our eyes, as it is happening.

    Length: 01:52:38
  • Frontline. The Farmer's Wife Part02.

    In Part 2 of "The Farmer's Wife," the camera focuses on the rhythms of everyday life on the Buschkoetters' farm. We follow Juanita, Darrel, and their three girls through days reminiscent of a forgotten, simpler time in America. In September, an early frost destroys thirty percent of their crop. Darrel must go to work at a nearby farm for seven dollars an hour and does his own farming at night. Juanita cleans houses while trying to get a college degree so Darrel can stay home and farm, but Darrel worries that if she goes off the farm she'll find something she likes better. By Christmas, they are dead broke and unsure of their future.

    Length: 01:50:14
  • Frontline. The Insurgency.

    With access to insurgent leaders, this FRONTLINE investigation tells the story of the diverse groups that make up the resistance movement in Iraq, exploring their roots and their incubation in the days after the coalition invasion of 2003.

    Length: 00:57:01
  • Frontline. The Invasion of Iraq.

    In "The Invasion of Iraq," FRONTLINE takes viewers behind the scenes of the allied invasion and advance on Baghdad. Through interviews with key commanders and soldiers -- U.S., British, and Iraqi -- as well as Iraqi civilians, the documentary offers a rare battlefield perspective on the war, as told in first-hand accounts of those who lived it.

    Length: 01:56:58
  • Frontline: The Jesus Factor

    As an evangelical Christian, President Bush has something in common with the 46 percent of Americans who describe themselves as being "born again" or having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. How George W. Bush became a born-again Christian -- and the impact that decision has had on his political career -- is the focus of FRONTLINE's report, "The Jesus Factor." Through interviews with Bush family friends, advisers, political analysts, and observers -- as well as excerpts from the president's speeches, interviews, and debates -- this one-hour documentary chronicles George W. Bush's personal religious journey while also examining the growing political influence of the nation's more than 70 million evangelical Christians. To what extent do the president's spiritual beliefs impact or influence his political decision-making? And how closely do Bush's religious views mirror those of the country's burgeoning, and politically influential, evangelical movement?

    Length: 00:56:57
  • Frontline: The Killer at Thurston High

    In the late 1990s Americans witnessed a startling new terror: kids killing other kids in school. FRONTLINE takes a measure of this national dilemma through a detailed, intimate journey into the life of one high school shooter, Kip Kinkel. In May 1998, at the age of 15, Kip shot his father and mother to death and the next day opened fire on classmates at Thurston High in Springfield, Oregon, killing two and injuring 25. This program traces the quiet terror and ordinary way in which Kip and his parents lost their way.

    Length: 00:56:44
  • Frontline. The Long Road to War.

    In this two-hour special "The Long Road to War," FRONTLINE draws on its extensive archives of more than 12 years of reporting on Iraq to tell the history of the U.S. confrontation with Saddam. The special will examine how the West armed Iraq, the mind and methods of Saddam Hussein, the origins of the first Gulf War and its ragged end, the frustrating effort to disarm Iraq through U.N. inspections, how Saddam survived efforts to undermine his power, and the long-standing effort by Washington hawks to remove him.

    Length: 01:56:32
  • Frontline: The Merchants of Cool

    Teenagers today have more money and independence than ever before. Their lives have become the object of obsessive focus by corporate America. Their tastes, attitudes and aspirations are sampled and resampled by marketers wielding the latest scientific tools to determine exactly who they are and what they want. But are they simply reflecting teen desires or have they begun to manufacture those desires in a bid to secure this lucrative market? And have they gone too far in their attempts to reach the hearts -- and wallets -- of America's youth? FRONTLINE explores the culture in which today's American teenager is growing up and how they've come to view themselves and their parents.

    Length: 00:56:19
  • Frontline. The New Asylums.

    Fewer than 55,000 Americans currently receive treatment in psychiatric hospitals. Meanwhile, almost 10 times that number -- nearly 500,000 -- mentally ill men and women are serving time in U.S. jails and prisons. Have America's jails and prisons become its new asylums? As the rising number of mentally ill inmates shows no sign of abating, those working inside the nation's prisons are struggling with a system designed for security, not treatment. In "The New Asylums," FRONTLINE goes deep inside Ohio's state prison system to explore the complex and growing issue of mentally ill prisoners.

    Length: 00:56:40
  • Frontline: The Persuaders

    Frontline examines the "persuasion industries" -- advertising and public relations. To cut through consumers' growing resistance to their pitches, marketers have developed new ways of integrating their messages into the fabric of our lives, using sophisticated market research techniques to better understand consumers and turning to the little-understood techniques of public relations to make sure their messages come from sources we trust.

    Length: 01:25:18
  • Frontline. The Storm.

    FRONTLINE examines how and why government at every level -- local, state and federal -- was unprepared, uncoordinated and overwhelmed in dealing with the Hurricane Katrina disaster that devastated the Gulf Coast in the late summer of 2005 and killed more than 900 people in New Orleans.

    Length: 00:56:56
  • Frontline. The Tank Man.

    On a fateful day in June 1989, the world became fixed on the bold image of a lone man staring down a procession of tanks in Tiananmen Square, Beijing. While trying to unearth the story behind this courageous man, the producers of The Tank Man uncover additional stories about the clash between the communist government of the People's Republic of China and those who advocate for a more open, democratic society. In this film FRONTLINE explores a society in transition 17 years after the demonstrations at Tiananmen Square. China has become open for global business, but it remains closed to a free media and available information.

    Length: 01:26:39
  • Frontline. Who Was Lee Harvey Oswald? Part 01.

    In a news-breaking three-hour special, originally broadcast in 1993 to mark the 30th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy's assassination, FRONTLINE reveals new information about Lee Harvey Oswald -- the man behind the political murder of the century. Part One chronicles Oswald's early life: from his troubled childhood to his mysterious service in the U.S. Marines that raised questions about his possible connections to U.S. military intelligence. This program also investigates Oswald's activities in the late 1950s and early 1960s, including his dramatic defection to the Soviet Union in 1959 and his return to the United States in 1962.

    Length: 01:06:33
  • Frontline. Who Was Lee Harvey Oswald? Part 02.

    In a news-breaking three-hour special, originally broadcast in 1993 to mark the 30th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy's assassination, FRONTLINE reveals new information about Lee Harvey Oswald -- the man behind the political murder of the century. Part Two examines Oswald's ties to both political and criminal organizations. Reports have him linked to the Mafia, the CIA, and the KGB, as well as Castro's Cuba.

    Length: 00:47:47
  • Frontline. Who Was Lee Harvey Oswald? Part 03.

    In a news-breaking three-hour special, originally broadcast in 1993 to mark the 30th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy's assassination, FRONTLINE reveals new information about Lee Harvey Oswald -- the man behind the political murder of the century. In Part Three, "Who Was Lee Harvey Oswald?" traces Oswald's movements in the weeks leading up to the assassination. The program contains several investigative exclusives, including the definitive proof that Oswald's fingerprints were on the rifle that killed John F. Kennedy.

    Length: 00:57:47

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