Review of Control Room (2004) by Jess K — 25 Jul 2007

This is one phenomenal & eye-opening documentary. It is balanced to a great extent, even though one could argue that Al Jazeera is biased in its views & coverage & is not as perfect as the movie makes it out to be, which may indeed be true, but as stated in the movie, when war is concerned, isn't objectivity just a mirage? However, another point made by the movie itself could be about the bias inherent in everything, including this very film in its portrayal of Al Jazeera & its exclusion of what it deems disadvantageous to its own point of view.

At turns shocking, disturbing, infuriating, heartbreaking, thought-provoking, compelling, entertaining, & altogether excellent, this will surely provoke discussion & debate. It is darkly comic in irony involving misunderstanding of Iraqi children, the optional use of the Geneva Convention, & most of Rumsfeld's remarks.

Perhaps what struck me most was the death of Tareq Ayyoub, a journalist of Al Jazeera killed by a controversial U.S. airstrike at the news station's Baghdad headquarters. It is a horrifying revelation that makes one question the extent the U.S. will go to in order to protect what it views is in its best interest & the true freedom of the media.

Another terribly interesting component is Lt. Rushing, the press officer for the United States Central Command, who appears sincerely interested in hearing both sides of any issue. He recognizes the bias in both Al Jazeera AND Fox News as they pick & choose what stories to cover & for how long. He also admits that he is upset at feeling significantly less distraught with the images of dead and wounded Iraqis as opposed to when he saw footage of dead and wounded American soldiers. He realizes that the images of the former may be just as devastating to Arabs as the latter were to him.

This film is mandatory viewing for anyone interested in journalism, politics, war, & America & the Arab world. If that sounds dramatic, which it certainly is, you'll just have to see it to believe it, because it's absolutely true.