The IFC Media Project
# The IFC Media Project

The IFC Media Project is an American television series, which airs on the Independent Film Channel (IFC) in the United States.

The show is a documentary series which examines America's news media and seeks to uncover the truth about the news. In its first two seasons it was hosted by award winning journalist Gideon Yago and featured in-depth reporting on controversial topics facing today's media through its use of interviews and documentary footage.

In the third season, the show dropped its "magazine-style" format and focused each episode on telling 22-minute short documentaries under the tagline "4 Nights, 4 Journalists, 4 Stories." The third season follows journalists Max Blumenthal, Nir Rosen, Charlie LeDuff and Andrew Berends.

The series is filmed at various locations and is produced by Meghan O'Hara and Nick McKinney.

## Episodes

### Season 3 (2010)

| # | Title | Original air date | Production code |
| - | - | - | - |
| 01 | "FEAR" | May 24, 2010 (2010-05-24) | 301 |
| The episode follows Max Blumenthal as he explores the language of fear within the Tea Party Movement and how Fox News Channel and leaders of the Republican Party are using fear to meet their own political ends. ||||
| 02 | "WAR" | May 25, 2010 (2010-05-25) | 302 |
| The episode explores the Obama administration's strategy for the war in Afghanistan through the lens of reconstruction. Journalist Nir Rosen travels to Kabul and Wardak Province to uncover how $51 billion have been spent. ||||
| 03 | "GREED" | May 26, 2010 (2010-05-26) | 303 |
| Charlie LeDuff turns the media's fascination with the decimation of his hometown, Detroit, Michigan, inside out. Leaving his hometown to confront the power brokers in Wall Street and the United States Congress, LeDuff meets Senators, journalists and stock brokers in his hunt to discover what happened to the American dream. Featuring H. Rodgin Cohen and Matt Taibbi ||||
| 04 | "DISASTER" | May 27, 2010 (2010-05-27) | 304 |
| The episode focuses on the media's coverage of the earthquake in Haiti. Following documentary filmmaker and photographer Andrew Berends as well as Dan Rather and CNN, we see how the media mobilizes and struggles to cover their story in a disaster zone. ||||

### Season 2 (2009)

| # | Title | Original airdate | Production code |
| - | - | - | - |
| 01 | "American Worldview" | May 3, 2009 (2009-05-03) | 201 |
| The episode takes a look at how the US is portrayed in the world media, and how it's often misrepresented. Featured segment investigates why English Al-Jazeera is unavailable in most of the US. Featured interview with the creator of "BCC World News America" Rome Hartman. ||||
| 02 | "Crossing the Line" | May 10, 2009 (2009-05-10) | 202 |
| The episode explores journalistic ethics and when it is or isn't okay to "cross the line" in pursuit of a story. Featured is the story of Muntadhar al-Zaidi, the Iraqi journalist who threw a shoe at President Bush during a press conference. Featured interview with columnist Randy Cohen. ||||
| 03 | "Agendas" | May 17, 2009 (2009-05-17) | 203 |
| The episode covers a variety of topics, including questioning the media's agendas in political and business news coverage, the debate over clean coal and how two competing publicity campaigns obfuscate the issue, as well as a look at why we will continue to need coal for years to come. Activist Alex Jones is featured as a "below-the-radar" anti-government media voice. ||||
| 04 | "Economics and News" | May 24, 2009 (2009-05-24) | 204 |
| The episode focuses on the plight of the media in today's current economic state. Case studies compare former media insiders' perspectives as well as show who's hurting and benefiting from the digital shift. A mini-feature piece chronicles the death of the Rocky Mountain News as told from the point of view of its editor and publisher, John Temple. ||||
| 05 | "Government and the Media" | May 31, 2009 (2009-05-31) | 205 |
| The episode chronicles four journalists inside the White House Press Corps under Obama's administration, and interweaves a look on how Barack Obama relates to media and how certain elements have affected government transparency in the media through time. ||||

### Season 1 (2008)

| # | Title | Original airdate | Production code |
| - | - | - | - |
| 01 | "New Fixations and Taboos" | November 18, 2008 (2008-11-18) | 101 |
| Examines media obsessions as well as off-limit topics in news reporting. The episode takes a closer look at the influences of the Pro-Israel lobby on US press coverage and follows a media consultant who brokers stories of abducted children into mainstream news. ||||
| 02 | "The Frontlines of Journalism" | November 25, 2008 (2008-11-25) | 102 |
| The episode follows Iraqi photo-journalist Ben Lawi as he captures the US-Iraqi conflict, the people of Iraq, and reconstruction. It also examines the Bush administrations propaganda efforts which helped to sell the war to America through the assistance of the media. Featured interview with Valerie Plame. ||||
| 03 | "Dumbing it Down" | December 2, 2008 (2008-12-02) | 103 |
| Features an experiment by a neuroscientist that looks at the psychological effects of screaming, pundit-driven news. After exploring a story about big pharmaceutical companies, a closer look is taken on how overwhelming and paralyzing the news can be. Featured interview with Dan Rather. ||||
| 04 | "The Unreliable Sources" | December 9, 2008 (2008-12-09) | 104 |
| The episode first critiques media and press coverage of the economic crisis. Features a story about the Atlantic Yards project in Brooklyn and how New York's three major daily papers failed to cover it critically. Featured interview with The Yes Men. ||||
| 205 | "The Anatomy of a Story" | December 16, 2008 (2008-12-16) | 105 |
| The episode follows Carmen, a reporter for the Latin El Diario La Prensa, as she crosses the country on a Greyhound bus searching for Latin stories. Features a breakdown of how the media covers the same old story about the war on drugs, and how it's perpetuated by the US Government and unquestioned by the mainstream media. ||||
| 06 | "The Future of the News" | December 23, 2008 (2008-12-23) | 106 |
| Features a stunt that predicts an idyllic Utopian press, then muses about the future of news and how journalism must adapt to ubiquitous media. Features an interview with Arianna Huffington. ||||

## Featured

* Max Blumenthal
* Nir Rosen
* Charlie LeDuff
* Andrew Berends
* Gideon Yago

### Guest stars

* Robb Wood
* Cliff Kincaid
* Allan Block
* Radmilla Suleymanova
* Rome Hartman
* Randy Cohen
* Mark LeVine
* Tucker Carlson
* Benjamin Lowy
* Jimmy Tingle
* Valerie Plame
* Carl Marci
* Dan Rather
* Tim Wilson
* Arianna Huffington
* Frank Luntz
* Richard Mack
* Dick Armey
* Matt Taibbi
* Rodgin Cohen
