| Mason
Coproduces "Sesno Reports : The
Cost of War"
Story Courtesy of the Mason Gazette
The
fourth installation of Sesno Reports—"The
Cost of War"—will air Oct. 28
at 8 p.m. on WETA TV-26. The program, moderated
by Frank Sesno, professor of public policy
and communication, veteran journalist,
and former CNN Washington bureau chief,
was coproduced
by WETA, George Mason's School of Public
Policy
and the College of Arts and Sciences. It
is the first of three programs in the six-program
series that will air nationally.
"The
Cost of War," taped
last month, examines America's global war on
terrorism and the personal, military, diplomatic
and political costs associated with war. It features
a discussion panel made up of government and
military officials, students, veterans and two
Hollywood actors.
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|
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“The
Cost of War: Sesno Reports”
WETA
TV 26
Thursday, Oct. 28, at
8:00
P.M.
|
"The level of interest in
this topic is truly amazing," says President
Alan Merten. "I have had multiple opportunities
to discuss the upcoming program. This program and
series have afforded George Mason an unprecedented
opportunity to bring attention to important topics."
"In the post-9/11 world, all
of us, in a very real and personal way, have had
to deal with the effects and impact of war," says
Sesno, "The costs are complex and diverse. In
this show, we delve deeper than the headlines and
ask, as a nation, as a people, 'Is the cost of war
now the price of freedom?' "
Frank Sesno
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In the program, members
of the panel line up on opposite sides
of the issue. Political perspectives
come from Sens. Jack Reed and Lindsay
Graham, both military veterans and
members of the Senate Armed Services
Committee. Retired U.S. Army Gen. George
Joulwan, former NATO Supreme Allied
Commander, also takes part, along with
representatives from the American Enterprise
Institute, a public policy think tank,
and the Center for American Progress,
a nonpartisan research and educational
institute. In addition, two veteran
actors who have portrayed characters
in war films during their careers,
Chuck Norris and Mike Farrell, offer
their views on Hollywood's depiction
of war.
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Chuck
Norris of Walker, Texas Ranger and Delta Force fame
is a supporter
of President
George
W. Bush and
his Iraq policy. Norris doesn't believe
Hollywood glorifies war, even though
he has starred
as an action hero in
more than one war film. He lost a brother
during the Vietnam War and is sensitive
to how war
is portrayed. "I've
done Vietnam movies, but I didn't do it for glorification," says
the actor. "[I'm] hoping and praying that we will
resolve this and get out of it very soon," he
says of the war in Iraq.
Unlike Norris, Mike
Farrell is no fan of Bush or his war policies. A
cofounder
of
Artists
United-Win Without
War and longtime humanitarian, Farrell
believes cooperation with the United
Nations would
have been a better
alternative than war. The two divergent
opinions make for a lively
on-air debate. For more information,
go to the Sesno Reports Web Site at
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/mmedia/partners/sesnoreports.htm |
