Documentaries about politics, history

The three part series explores the presidency, policies and long term impact of Ronald Reagan's two terms in office. The series includes notable members of Reagan's team as well as many who opposed his policies. Interview subjects include Walter Mondale, Condoleezza Rice, Sandra Day O'Connor, Andrew Young, Robert Reich, Bud McFarlane, George Shultz, Reza Aslan, Trita Parsi, Douglas Brinkley, Svetlana Savranskaya, Oscar Arias and others.

A history of American propaganda, form WW2, to the Cold War, to the War on Drugs, to the War on Terror.

Marx Reloaded is a cultural documentary that examines the relevance of German socialist and philosopher Karl Marx's ideas for understanding the global economic and financial crisis of 2008-09. The crisis triggered the deepest global recession in 70 years and prompted the US government to spend more than 1 trillion dollars in order to rescue its banking system from collapse. Today the full implications of the crisis in Europe and around the world still remain unclear. Nevertheless, should we accept the crisis as an unfortunate side-effect of the free market? Or is there another explanation as to why it happened and its likely effects on our society, our economy and our whole way of life? Written and directed by Jason Barker - himself an experienced writer, lecturer, translator and doctor of philosophy - Marx Reloaded comprises interviews with the world's leading philosophers of Marxism, including those at the forefront of a popular revival in Marxist and communist ideas. The film also includes interviews with skeptics of this revival as well as light-hearted animation sequences which follow Marx's adventures through the matrix of his own ideas.

John Fitzgerald Kennedy is perhaps the most charismatic person to have held the office of President of the United States. This program examines the enduring influence of his presidency on each of the nine men who have come after him.

Revealing profile of Dick Cheney, former VP. Covers his political career from Washington beginnings to Bush administration, offering personal insights.

Never before seen Super 8 home movies filmed by Richard Nixon's closest aides - and convicted Watergate conspirators - offer a surprising and intimate new look into his Presidency.

The life and times of Olof Palme, the prime minister of Sweden until his assassination in 1986.

From running the country to skydiving, this endearing and enlightening portrait explores the life and careers of George H.W. Bush, the 41st President of the United States.

"Often the best source of information about waste, fraud, and abuse in government is an existing government employee committed to public integrity and willing to speak out. Such acts of courage and patriotism, which can sometimes save lives and often save taxpayer dollars, should be encouraged rather than stifled. We need to empower federal employees as watchdogs of wrongdoing and partners in performance."

A documentary that chronicles Sarah Palin's pre-political life; her tenure as Governor of Alaska, and her time spent as John McCain's running mate.

Documentary uncovering the failure of the UN sanctioned war on drugs.

Chronicles the financial meltdown of 2008 and centers on Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson.

For 28 years, the Berlin Wall split a city and a whole nation. While the notorious dangers frightened many GDR citizens, there were others who tried to overcome it. Families fly across the border in a home-made hot air balloon or swing over the Wall hanging from a makeshift pulley. The Wall still works but Communism is crumbling behind it. Suddenly, the borders are open, and the Wall comes down.

A story about growing up in the Soviet Union. The film tells the story of a strange kind of information war, where a totalitarian regime stands face to face with the heroes of popular culture. And loses. It was a time when it was possible for erotic film star Emmanuelle to bring down the Red Army and MacGyver to outdo an entire school administration. It is a film about our generation, who were unknowingly brought to the front line of the Cold War. Western popular culture had an incomparable role shaping Soviet children's world views in those days. Finnish television was a window to a world of dreams that the authorities could not block in any way. Though Finnish channels were banned, many households found some way to access the forbidden fruit.

Did you know that the current Federal Reserve Bank is actually the third in a series of failed banking attempts that have all left an indelible mark on our society? Award winning filmmaker William Lewis Films has produced a documentary of tremendous importance for all Americans. Life On the Edge of a Bubble is a timely exposé that illuminates the unstable history of the American financial system. Beginning with our first Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton, this thought provoking film leads its viewer through the perpetual cycle of booms and busts that threatens the American Dream. A provocative and often humorous adventure, the film challenges conventional wisdom about the causes of the current crisis and leads the debate about solutions.

The eyewitness story of the illegal U.S. and U.K. military anthrax vaccination programs, which is recommended by Montel Williams as the Must-See Documentary of the Year. Because of the vaccine's crippling and deadly consequences when incurable auto-immune disease and birth defects spread like wildfire through Gulf War veterans, your nation was compromised by a for-profit no-liability procurement system ruled by political fears & corrupt scientists. Watch this documentary to learn why you must stop illegal human experiments in the name of Homeland Security. By saving a veteran, you can save your own life.

An investigation of "disaster capitalism", based on Naomi Klein's proposition that neo-liberal capitalism feeds on natural disasters, war and terror to establish its dominance.

A documentary detailing the various questions about Barack Obama's past, filmed before the 2008 presidential election.

The Murrow, Polk, and IDA Award-winning documentary Boogie Man is about Lee Atwater, a blues-playing rogue whose rise from the South to Chairman of the GOP made him a political rock star. He mentored George W. Bush and Karl Rove while leading the Republican party to historic victories, helping make liberal a dirty word, and transforming the way America elects our Presidents. In interviews with Republicans and friends of Atwater, Boogie Man examines his role in America's shift to the right. To Democrats offended by the 1988 Willie Horton controversy, Atwater was a remorseless political assassin dubbed by one Congresswoman "the most evil man in America." The film examines his irreverent sense of humor, his understanding of the American heartland, and his unapologetic vision of politics as war. It ends with a portrait of a cynic's deathbed search for meaning.

Superpower illustrates how the United States has leveraged its position to ensure unilateral world domination through absolute economic and military superiority and government deception.

The notion that oil motivates America's military engagements in the Middle East is often disregarded as nonsense or mere conspiracy theory. In Blood and Oil, bestselling author and Nation magazine defense correspondent Michael T. Klare challenges this conventional wisdom and corrects the historical record. The film unearths declassified documents and highlights forgotten passages in prominent presidential doctrines to show how concerns about oil have been at the core of American foreign policy for more than 60 years -- rendering our contemporary energy and military policies virtually indistinguishable. In the end, Blood and Oil calls for a radical re-thinking of US energy policy, warning that unless we change direction, we stand to be drawn into one oil war after another as the global hunt for diminishing world petroleum supplies accelerates.

Few are aware that America may be on the brink of a financial meltdown. I.O.U.S.A. explores the country's shocking current fiscal condition and ways to avoid a national economic disaster.

With commentary from soldiers on both sides of the conflict, filmmaker Kevin Booth's incisive documentary wades into the murky waters of the American war on drugs, the longest and costliest war in U.S. history.

A minute by minute account of the events before, during, and after the shooting of President Reagan in March 1981. Includes interviews from many of those on scene that day including secret service, members of Reagan's cabinet, and even the TV cameramen who captured the event.