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American Morning

The Big Question: Is It Right for CBS to Air Its 9/11 Documentary?

Aired March 04, 2002 - 07:21   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: The big question this hour, is it right for CBS to air its 9/11 documentary? The documentary, with an inside view of the World Trade Center disaster, is scheduled to air this coming Sunday night.

Now, the tape consists of footage that was being taken by a French documentary team that was actually looking at the way firefighters were being trained that fateful day. After the first plane hit, they followed the firefighters into one of the towers.

CBS has already agreed not to show some of the most graphic images such as bodies falling from the World Trade Center towers. But, some family members want CBS to postpone it.

Carie Lemack, whose mother was killed on board one of the hijacked planes, says it is too soon for the nation to relive the tragedy. But not everyone agrees with that. Lynn Castrianno Galanti lost her brother on 9/11. She believes that seeing the film can help people heal. Lynn joins us from Omaha, Nebraska this morning. Carie Lemack is with us here in New York.

Welcome to both of you.

CARIE LEMACK, DAUGHTER OF 9/11 VICTIM: Thank you.

LYNN CASTRIANNO GALANTI, SISTER OF 9/11 VICTIM: Thank you.

ZAHN: All right, Carie, why are you so opposed to CBS airing this documentary?

LEMACK: I think first and foremost is it's only been six months and, you know, whenever there's a war or some sort of tragedy like this, generally the media allows you more time than six months to relive the gruesome death of your mother, your husband, your daughter. Unfortunately, they're not giving us this time.

As well, they have insisted on airing the footage of my mom's plane blowing up. Now, when I spoke to CBS, one of their vice presidents, she told me no, no, no, we're not going to show anyone dying. And when I said well does that mean you're not going to show my mom's plane hitting the tower, she said well, except for that. And I don't understand how CBS can think that 92 people on that plane and all those people on the floor where that plane hit don't count as dying. But apparently they don't.

ZAHN: All right, Lynn, you lost a brother on 9/11, as well.

CASTRIANNO: Yes.

ZAHN: First of all, your response to what Carie's just had to say? Are you at all sensitive to any of her arguments that the documentary simply should not air?

CASTRIANNO: Absolutely I'm sensitive to that and it's a very disturbing image. I understand exactly what Carie's saying and I understand that point of view. And the reason why I feel like the CBS documentary ought to air is I want the general public to feel their outrage, their -- I want them to question why was this allowed to happen? It's not so much that I feel that the documentary is going to help people heal or to help the families heal. But I really feel as though there are a lot of things going on and there are a lot of unanswered questions. And if people can view the documentary and feel the rage and the anger and their grief that they felt, you know, on September 11 and, you know, in the weeks after that, I'd like for people to start questioning how we allowed this to happen. What went wrong?

And there were many things that went wrong. It wasn't just at the airline level. It wasn't just at the governmental level. There was, there are issues with the evacuation of the World Trade Center. There are issues with the integrity of the building. There are issues with having no recourse for people on the upper floors to get out of the building.

And what I really want is for people to start questioning why this was allowed to happen.

LEMACK: And maybe, if I could also clear things up, Paula. And I've spoken with Lynn and worked with her. And I agree that the, that it's OK to air some of the footage. What I don't agree with is some of the footage, which is my mom's plane hitting, the timing and also...

ZAHN: Unfortunately, though, that video has been played over and over...

LEMACK: Which is why it's not news.

ZAHN: ... again.

LEMACK: Right. Which is why, this is supposed to be a documentary about the heroic efforts of the firemen. We are one hundred percent on board with showing the heroic efforts. Why they have to show my mom's plane, which had nothing to do with the firemen, we can't seem to understand. And why they will not let mental health professionals preview the tape to be able to prepare the educational systems for the aftermath, the fallout of what the children who lost parents are going to experience.

ZAHN: I guess CBS, I read this morning, is considering at the end of the documentary putting up the names of various mental health facilities where people could seek some advice if they're disturbed by this documentary. But let's go back to the point Lynn was making. It seems as the nation has gone about resuming its normal lives that perhaps what Lynn was talking about, you know, those outraged voices in the beginning, have been somewhat silenced by time.

LEMACK: And I...

ZAHN: What about the point she's making? Simply by airing this you might get Americans to demand even more of its government?

LEMACK: I think Lynn's points are very well taken and I think that most people would agree that we definitely don't want people, we want them to remember and we want them to understand some of the issues that we're dealing with now, as Lynn said, the integrity of the building, the evacuation. But unfortunately they are not just focusing on that. They're showing gruesome murders and this country is not a country where we show executions on TV.

ZAHN: Lynn, you get the final word. And we have about 15 seconds left before the satellite runs out.

CASTRIANNO: OK. Well, I understand what Carie is saying, but I also feel that the shots of the airplane going into the building are those that are the most egregious and those are the ones that evoke the most emotions. And as painful as it is for people to watch this, I really think that those are the emotions we need to have in order to get some action.

ZAHN: Well, we appreciate both of your insights this morning.

LEMACK: Thank you.

ZAHN: Lynn Castrianno Galanti, thanks for joining us from Nebraska this morning.

CASTRIANNO: Thank you.

ZAHN: Carie, good to see you again.

LEMACK: Thanks, Paula.

ZAHN: Carie Lemack, who came in from New Jersey this morning. Appreciate your time.

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