" What's going on here?" " I don't see anything." "Anywhere" "Hey, you okay?" "That's how they get ya they're under the goddam ground" " well, what the hell are they?" " The sons of bitches" "... smoke from Iraqi shelling ... tank divisions poured across the virtually undefended..." "These are outlaws..." "Iraqi troops and tanks continue to roll into Kowait" "Baghdad is me" " You're supposed to be in berlin" " Fuck berlin!" "The wall's down." "Baghdad is me, Eason" " You've never even been to Baghdad" " close enough." "jerusalem" "I wouldn't bring up JerusaIem if I were you." "It's not a point in your favor" " So what happened in jerusalem?" " Oh, they stoned his car" "Is that why Ted Turner wants me to fire him?" "That's fine" "well, good field producers sometimes elicit that response" " His crew wasn't killed, he got the story" " I think he'II do this" "Robert I'd Iike you to meet Tom Johnson the new president of CNN" "How do you do?" "You're the man who turned around the L.A. Times" "Nice of you to characterize it that way" " So, uh, who you gonna fire here?" " Robert, heel" "well, actually, Ted's memo only mentioned you" "But I don't think it's so much about a change of personnel" "CNN has assets we haven't fully utilized" "You want to know what I think?" "We're a 24 hour news network" "looking for a 24 hour story and one just fell from the sky" "people aren't gonna wait till 7 o'cIock at night to find out whether we're at war or not." "They're gonna tune to CNN" "Yeah, I understand you want Baghdad" " Yes, I do" " Baghdad's tricky" "There's the element of finess here that may not be your strongest suit" "Yeah, I'm the right man for the job Eason, and you know it" "alright I agree with you." "It is a 24 hour story and the whole world's gonna want to see it" "ABC and CBS are already in there." "We've gotta play catch up" "We've gotta own the story" "Ted Turner's guaranteed me that we'II have everything we need to do that" "Now we need somebody with guts and good judgment" "That's me" "We know you've got the guts." "Now you prove you've got the judgment" "I want all my employees to come home standing up." "Understood?" "Understood" " alright" " alright" " Farzad Bazoft" " Yeah, I know" "London Observer journalist doing his job." "Got a little ambitious, the iraqis hung him as a spy" "Just want you to know what you're up against" "They seal the borders, they're not letting people out" "Right, I know, I get it." "police state on the brink of war." "State censorship up the kazoo" "But I'II tell you something:" "If there is a war and we're there reporting live behind enemy lines" "This is a journalistic equivalent of walking on the moon" " Who do you want?" " Murphy" "Murphy's good, yeah." "I Iike Murphy." "I want Ingrid Formanek, too" " She's in Rome" " Yeah" "But on the map it's like an inch" "He needs a watchdog, not a cheerleader" "Are you kidding me?" "The woman practically hates me" "She second guesses every move I make" " 'You sIeepin with her?" " No." "I want her head, not her ass." "She keeps me honest" "alright" "Look, I went out on a limb for you back there." "Let's don't fuck it up" "I know." "Thank you." "Thank you" "Hey, Ed" " I'm gonna need a shit load of cash" " Yeah, right" "So, we smoke cigars now" " Yoo hoo!" " Ingrid!" "You look great." "A little pale" " You eating alright?" " Yeah, anyway." "So, what's with the cigars?" " Joe wilson smokes them" " And he is who?" "He's our man in Baghdad." "Ranking U.S. diplomat" " Is there a problem?" " Yeah, he confuses dollars with Iiras" " What would I do without you?" " Die a lonely death" "Is there any other kind?" " Wiener, you dick!" " Hey, Joe" " You know the man?" " Nyet" "Ingrid Formanek, CNN." "Joe ErIichman, CBS, Evening News" " Where you going?" "Why you leaving?" " Who knows?" "They're throwing us out" "They like to flex the muscle." "It's the Iraqi mind fuck" "Dan Rather's been making sheep eyes at Saddam Hussein trying to land an interview" "So far all we got is a rug" " Where you staying?" " Uh, Sheraton" "ShithoIe." "Check out the AI-Rasheed" "Why'd they let a scumbag like you in, that's what I want to know" "Why?" "Who'd you think they got their news from, you?" "From us they get the news." "From you they get access." "Bye" " See ya later" " Yeah, and fuck off" "We gotta nail that Saddam interview before CBS" " Modem?" "Modem?" " Battery pack." "For the camera" " Modem?" " WaIkman" "walkman!" "You got another one of those, Mark?" "Sounded expensive" " Are those?" " Barf bags" "Uh huh." "For later?" "No, I collect barf bags from airlines all over the world" "Kind of a cool thing to have" "Gonna be a tough gig" " 23 bottles of vodka" " There's supposed to be 24." "Shit" " For personal use?" " Yeah" " You are an alcoholic" " You're a customs inspector" "We all have our parts to play" "Man, eight hours in customs" " Are these gonna be safe up here?" " This is worse than Kinshasa" "Better than Romania, though" "Yeah." "At least here the men have the mustaches" "His excellency Saddam Hussein do not ask for paintings" "He's a simple man." "But the people love him so they rush to put them up" "Excuse me." "Who are you?" "I'm Mr. Mazin From Ministry of Information." "I'm here to help you" " Oh, well, stunning job so far" " Thank you" " Okay" " Where to go?" "Uh, AI Rasheed" " I thought we were staying at the Sheraton" " You heard the man." "It's a shithole" "Yeah, so what?" "I Iike shithoIes" "Look at this." "Straight out of all Babba" "I think I'm getting one of those rugs" "I think I'm getting cystitis" "They could throw us outta here anytime they want" "We're gonna have to be crafty" " We can do crafty" " Good" "Hey." "people are headed the other way" "Looks like ABC." "Nice cars." "Must be talent" "I gotta go to the bathroom" "Yeah, you just think you have to go to the bathroom" " Hey, Ingrid." "See if you can find a phone" " Yep" " Maybe Mr..." " Mazin" " ..." "Mazin can help you with that" " Of course" " And call the U.S. Embassy let..." " Let them know we're here." "OK" " No, nothing is available" " Not possible." "I have a reservation" " I find no reservation" " Five rooms and a suite" "Check under CNN, American television See if got it there" "Hey." "You know who this is?" "This is CNN" "24 hours a day." "Is it news or is it Muzak?" "Hey, Ink." "How you doing man?" "What're you doing here?" "I thought I saw your boys leaving" "Yeah, they're throwing us out" "We're doing better than NBC They haven't gotten in yet" "Ah, the Iraqi mind fuck, huh?" "Try under WIENER" " You heard?" " W-I-E-N-E-R" "At least we're allowed out" "How much latitude do they give you to report here?" "Man, you can't take a picture of a guy eating lunch without the OK" "Serious, yesterday, no kidding, we're trying to shoot a guy having a sandwich" "They pulled the plug." "I mean, c'mon I know the food is bad" " Yeah." "What's the local feed point like?" " Nightmare" "That's what I figured." "How we doing?" "I have checked all the lists." "I do not have a reservation for you" "Hey, you need help with this guy?" "unlike you, I have clout" "Nah, I'm a big boy." "I got it." "where'd you get that rug?" " Don't worry." "You'II get a rug" " alright." "See ya later" "Here." "See what you can do" " I will make every attempt" " Thank you, sir" "I told him to take it to your room, alright?" "So don't worry." "Okay" "Okay, so I talked to Joe wilson at the embassy and it's all set up" "Great. really good work." "Excuse me for a second." " Pardon me, what's your name?" " Fatima" "Fatima." "Meet our new translator, Fatima Fatima, Ingrid, Ingrid, Fatima" "But I'm not a translator I'm an Egyptian student" "really?" "How'd you Iike to be a translator?" "Hundred bucks a day" " Hundred dollars?" " Yeah" " alright." " Okay." "Presto, you're a translator" " What's your room number?" " Everything smooth?" " Smooth?" "I don't know about that" " I have found your reservation" "Perfect" " Smooth" " Now, how will you be paying?" "Uh, American Express" "Kidding." "Okay, how about cash?" " We accept cash" " Yeah, I figured you would" ""Cash is king", donald Trump" " Did you say donald Trump?" " Yes." "I read his book." "Amazing" "Your room has a view of the mosque and of the swimming pool" "really?" "well, that about covers the range of human endeavor." "There you go" " No way" " Check it out" "Ladies and gentlemen, the rolling Stones!" " That's great" " Wait, wait, wait" "Privacy is not what's going on here, Marky boy" " Consider that before speaking" " tell me about it" "There's like this blinking red light thing in the bathroom ceiling" "I'm gonna have to get dressed to take a shower" " Room service" " Yeah could you send up a Pepsi, please?" " I'd take a Pepsi" " I'II have a Coke" "No, there's no Coke in Baghdad." "bottling plant's in Dixie" " israel" " I'd take a YooHoo" " It's a chocolate drink" " I didn't say anything" "Make it seven Pepsis" "Iraq has imposed restrictions on innocent civilians from many countries" "This is unacceptable" "release all foreigners now." "Give them the right to come and go as they wish" "Fuck." "Anybody else's back hurt?" "Not me, I brought a pillow with me from home" "Robert, look at this." "This is interesting." "Saddam..." "I don t know what" " Hey, where's the Egyptian girl?" " Fatima" " Hey, Mark, we should record" " Fatima, come quick" " Fatima... quick." "What's he saying?" " Come here, what's he saying here?" "Judy, call CNN and tell them to stand by" " Murphy come here" " C'mon" "He's saying these people are British They are our, um, guest, guests" " Guests?" " Yeah, right" "He's saying Stuart will, I m sure, be happy that he played a role in maintaining peace" "Are you getting your milk, Stuart?" "With cornfIakes, too?" "He's scaring the shit outta that kid" " This is great TV" " Yeah, it is" " You got kids?" " No." "My wife's 7 months pregnant" " You?" " Yeah." "I got two" "atlanta's standing by" "Hey, Mark, call Mazin and have him book some satellite time" "feels like a photo top to me" " He's saying..." " Compassionate Saddam ...the Iraqi child unfortunately do not have any milk" "This kid's petrified" "Um, a generous person writes his propaganda" "Fuck them." "Let them say what they want." "The story's not here" "The story's right there" "The boy is 5 years old." "His name is Stuart Lockwood." "He's a British subject" "No, tighter, tighter." "The boy, 5 year old Stuart Lockwood is a British subject..." "Better?" "held at an undisclosed location... these families, Iike other foreign nationals, have been denied visas from Iraq" "Here, visited by President Saddam Hussein" " ...these people are in effect - these people are in effect" "Hostages" " Isn't there another way to say that?" " No" "You really think that it'II fly?" "What else are you gonna call them?" "Guests is not gonna crack it" "Ok, but we're in it for the Iong haul." "Let's try not to get kicked out our first day" "How about this?" "In the rest of the world they're called hostages but here, they're called "guests"" " Works for me" " Okay" "We'II do a standup with a mosque in the background" " Coffee snack" " Hey, coffee snack" "I got time to take a shower?" "Yeah." "It's 3 now." "satellite's at 5 Take a shower" " You can put it right here" " Thank you" "Here, thanks" " Here you go" " Oh, thank you" "Excuse me." "Were you in the army here, sir?" "Oh." "Oh, yes." "Yes." "Five and half years" " Did you fight Iran?" " Yes" "Now, may, maybe I, I fight America?" " You want to go?" " Hey, Mr. Mazin" "You're early, I Iike that in a man" "But you want to go, yes?" "satellite in fifty minutes" " No." "satellite's at five" " Changed to four" " What did you just say?" " Four" " Fuck." "call Iraqi TV." " I'II call Iraqi TV" "Murphy!" "Let's go." "We gotta fly" "We've got ten minutes" "holy moley!" "Gee hi!" "My grandfather used to have stuffs like this in his basement" "Yeah, back in the eighties before you were born?" " Converter" " Excuse me gentlemen." "Thank you" "We're on the bird in four minutes." "Judy, where's the tape?" "Don't worry, it'II be alright" " Guys?" " Yeah, we're on it" "Hey, does anyone here speak english?" "Who might the head honcho be?" " Where is Ingrid Formanek?" " Oh, I be Ingrid Formanek" "I am Mrs. Awattif," "Director international Department Iraq TV." " delighted to meet you" " Hi, I'm Robert Wiener" "We are really sorry to interrupt your plans for this evening but we got a satellite feed..." "plans?" "What plans?" "I have no plans I am working here." "What is your purpose?" " I'm a producer." "And we need..." " I understand ..." "Miss Formanek is the producer" "Yeah, and she needs a satellite feed" "I am here to supervise your transmission, Miss Formanek what do you need?" "Yes, we need a phone to contact atlanta" " That would be the phone in my office" " Okay" "Okay" "Eason, Baghdad on three" "Robert, what's going on?" "We're on two minutes" "Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know." "We got it, we got it." "Ingrid's down with the censor going over the spot" "Sisterhood is powerful here in Iraq, man ...and placed in private homes in and around secret military and industrial sites" "In the rest of the world they're called..." " Must be dust" " But here in Baghdad  they're simply called guests" "What route are we bringing Baghdad in on?" "Thirty five, but all we got is hash" " Robert, we re not seeing you" " Shit!" " We're approved" " We're fucked." "Here, take this" "Mrs. Awattif, they're not seeing us in atlanta" " Judy, keep rolling for levels" " We got a chroma shift" "Yeah, whatever the hell that is, fix it Excuse me, could I get in here?" " One minute" " Ingrid, we got an image..." " ... but the audio needs boosting" " We got picture?" " Yeah, but you need to boost audio" " Shit!" "How much?" " How much?" " twelve DBs" " Judy, boost the audio twelve DBs" " Okay" " It's over modulated" " How much?" " Two DB" " Needs to come down two." "You go." "tell them." "I'II handle the phone" "Thirty seconds" "Judy, bring the audio down 2 and put 10 in the gate Mark come now" "Stay there" " Fifteen seconds" " Robert, we're there." "roll 18" " roll it!" " 12... 1 1 ..." " rolling!" " 10... 9..." " 7... 6..." " C'mon, c'mon 5... 4... 3... 2... 1" "Yeah, there we go" "Some extraordinary images from the Iraqi capital today" "President Saddam Hussein held a face to face meeting with a group of British hostages" "A meeting that was carried on Iraqi television" "The boy, five years old, is Stuart Lockwood, a British subject" " It was a good story" " It was bullshit!" "No, it was minimum comment, maximum content, that's all" "That is irresponsible." "You let Saddam spout off his garbage without challenging it" "You hand HitIer a microphone and you call it journalism" " Where was the editorial point of view?" " Where's trusting the viewer?" "They've got the ability to judge this stuff.And they have the right to see it" "absolutely" "But how can they know what they're seeing without some kind of context?" "Hey, I don t need some big lead in I know how I feel" "About a dictator who puts his hairy fuckin hand on some little hostageboy" "It's right there for anybody to see" " Who are you to say what it means?" " Oh, come on" "Who are we to say what it means?" "We didn't say what it means" " What do you think it means?" " I don't know what it means" "I'II tell you what it could be." "If we could get both sides talking" "What?" "Peace, love and understanding?" "C'mon, wierish." "We're just the eyes" "We put this shit up there and people pull it down on their Sonys." "I think I'm quoting you" "Nah, I said Zenith" " Oh, man." "Are you drunk?" " Yes" " The moment we become the story..." " It's over." "I know, I know" "Fuck 'em!" "It was a good story" "We're gonna need another one tomorrow" " Another what?" " Story." "local color" "Mazin's got something down at the Embassy We gotta get something to feed the beast" "Come, please, time is counting" "Hey, hey." "Cigars." "Embassy men love cigars, remember?" "You give Embassy man cigars, he gives you big access" " Hangover?" " brutal" "Down, down, Bosh!" "I'm just gonna start wide on the crowd" " Quick connect" " We're on it." "You got it" " Get these guys right here" " Excuse us." "Excuse us" " No soldier, no soldier" " Hey, hey!" "Okay, understood" "Okay." "Get the kid, the kid stroller." "See it?" "Yeah, they call the President Bosh instead of Bush" "Cause bosh in Arabic means "nothing"." "That's the joke" "They haul out a new group every day." "Teachers union..." " So called writers and poets" " Mark?" " Yeah?" " Stop" "You stop shooting, they all go home" "This is a very good cigar, by the way.Thank you" "Thought you might like that, you're welcome" "Is the Ambassador coming back, or..." "No." "No way." "We're in a read and burn mode now" "Yeah." "Hey, I saw your piece on the British hostages" "Oh, yeah." "So?" "Saddam was attempting to manipulate the media" "He wanted that material aired But I think it backfired on him." "Excuse me" "well, you know, it's not just the Brits that are trapped here." "What about the Americans?" "Man, I'd love to do a story on American hostages" " They can't seem to find any" " That's because they're in hiding" "Sorry..." "Saddam's holding fourty one at strategic bombing sites already" "The others are laying low." "We don't want them rounded up too" "Besides, they got burned by another news group" "Said they were sending pictures home to their families" "Right." "Yeah, yeah, then they put in on the evening news." "I know" "Look, all I know is that they're camera shy" "well, that's because nobody's ever interviewed them" "Hey, I don't want to do any misleading." "I want to tell a straight story" "I'm not gonna do a halfassed job" "I wanna put a face with the story" "The American public needs to know why they should care" "And I'II tell you something" "After careful consideration, the State Department's gonna agree" "Can I use your phone?" "Thanks" "Are you getting your milk, Stuart?" "And with cornflakes, too" "See this?" "You watch NightIine last night?" " Oh, the hostage story?" " A twenty-minute-charade" "Mr. Saddam's Neighborhood." "We're taking some serious hits on this" "C'mon, Tom." "If they had the technology back then," "hitler would have been on "Meet The Press"" "Stuart Lockwood was a great story" "That's why they re screaming." "That's what great stories do" "Now this... is not a great story" "Tom Murphy, CNN, Baghdad" "I know." "Arabs denounce Bush." "trivial news day" "You know what I want" "Hey, I know." "I'm on it" " believe me, I'm all over it" " alright, make it happen" "Hi." "Robert Wiener, CNN." "I've got an eight a.m. with the Director" "Yes" " You are pleased to be seated" " Yeah" " shortly he will be with you" " Okey dokey" "He will not be long" " please, have some mint tea" " OK" "nigel Babcock" "I'm here for my eleven o'cIock appointment with Mr. Naji AI-Hadikki" "Yes." "please" "Mr. Wiener will have some tea?" "This is rude and unacceptable" "Where is he?" "Is he here?" "bloody studip!" "Hi." "Ben Dupont, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation" "I'm a few minutes early for four o'cIock with Mr. Naji Hadikki" "Hadithi, Naji AI-Hadithi" "Yes, Mr. AI Hadithi" " He's not here" " I'm in the wrong office?" "No, no, no, no." "This is his office." "Mr. Naji is not here today" "Mr. Wiener will have some more tea?" " Oh." "You leaving?" " Yes" "No, no, no." "please, you stay" "Oh." "Hey, here, wait a minute here" " It's me" " It's you" " Thank you." "I show it to my son" " alright" "No, please, you stay." "Okay?" "Mr. Robert Wiener?" "please come in" "How did you know how to pronounce my name correctly?" "I took the trouble to find out" " Thank you for the cigars" " You're welcome" "I don't smoke." "But I'm impressed" "The same brand as you gave to Mr. wilson at the Embassy" "Ooh, this is the Ministry of Information" "How can I help you?" "A few things, actually, there's a request there for a couple of pieces of equipment" "I need a fourwire and a flyaway" "What is this?" "A fourwire is kind of elaborate phone system that will allow me to get through to my bureau in Amman and a flyaway's a little more elaborate" "Now, this has already been requested by your atlanta office." "What else?" "I want an interview with President Saddam Hussein" " You've made me a written request?" " It's in there as well, yeah" " I'II see what I can do" " How soon?" " You take liberties" " I'm an American" "We're the liberty people" " Tea?" " Yeah" "What would be the purpose for The interview?" "well, I gotta tell ya, I think without a dialogue, war is inevitable" "Yeah, but no dialogue is possible" "Your government and the Zionists have blackmailed the United Nations" " Are you a Zionist?" " No, I'm not" "You depicted President Hussein as a hostage taker" "Now, these people were his guests." "Nothing more" " The President got his message out?" " No." "You got your message out" "The Koran says: "Confound not truth with falsehood..."" ""..." "Nor knowingly conceal the truth"" "Can we at Ieast agree on that guiding philosophy?" "Do you think I'm so naive as to be charmed by a fortunate memory?" "I lucked out." "That's the only quarter I remember from college" "That, and the impression of profound human document" "Divine" "Why would President Saddam Hussein do CNN?" "Because we're the only network with global outreach" "Because we're in every foreign ministry ... And because he watches it" "According to U.S. intelligence a number of Iraqi troops now..." " What would be the interview's length?" " One hour at Ieast" " Ninety minutes?" " One hour" " Unedited?" " Unedited" "Bernard Shaw?" "No, that crosses the lines." "We have to choose our own interviewers" "Of course, this is all a theoretical conversation, you understand?" "Mint tea, whew!" "You know, strange enough, I Iike the guy" "Let's not be seduced by a British accent" "You don't get to where he is without doing some pretty heinous stuff" "I know." "I'm just saying I kinda like him." "A human thing" " Do I smell like mint?" " Hmm?" "Yeah, vaguely" "BBC world Service" "Bush made a taped message directed to the Iraqi people, going out on Iraqi TV" " Okay" " We should get some reaction in the street" "Once again, Iraq finds itself on the brink of war" "Once again the same Iraqi leadership has miscalculated" "Once again the Iraqi people face tragedy" "I do not believe that you, people of Iraq, want war" "You've born untold suffering..." "An American woman far from home, trapped in a war zone" "Cut it out!" "Don't you get this?" "He says we're on the brink of war" "We're in Saddam's neighborhood Saddam's the number one target" "They're gonna bomb the shit out of this place." "Right here" "Not 'til we get this interview." "C'mon, over here" "By the way, just a reminder Robert." "I'm leaving in two days" " What are you talking about?" " I signed up for one rotation and it's up in two days" " This, what, this is news to me" " He did say one rotation" "I'd stay, but my, my wife." "She's due in a month" "Oh, this is war." "You're on a news story, Tom" "If it was just me I'd stay, but it's not and I'm going" "Look, I gotta think about my wife and my baby" "I got a wife and I got two babies" "Yeah, and that's your problem I signed up for one rotation" "It's one rotation." "That's it" "alright." "Okay." "alright, alright, I got ya great, well, while you're here can you go get some reactions or something?" "You could've made him feel a little better about it" "Who're we gonna get to replace him?" "Richard Roth, CNN." "I'd Iike a room in which no one has ever smoked a cigarette" " Hey" " Richard Roth, don't call me Dick" "Robert Wiener." "Don't call me Dick either" " Good to see you." "What's with the tuna?" " Not much for Mideast cuisine" "Hey, thanks for coming" "well, no one else wanted to." "I didn't want to either, but..." " well, you came just in time" " Oh, how's that?" "We're going to a barbecue" "Not bad, the life of public service, huh?" "They're just a bunch of oil workers and businessmen" "They got their families out and kept on working til things got a little too hot" "Now they're holed up here." "It's for their own protection" "They leave they can be kidnapped by Saddam's men and used as human shields at potential bombing sites" "Yeah, Wow" " Ready?" "Okay, in here" " Yeah" " How you doing?" " Who the hell are you?" "Oh, hey." "How you doing?" "CNN." "We wanted to talk to you a little bit." "I'm Robert Wiener" "No interviews." "Nobody here wants publicity" "well, don't you have people back home who want to see you?" "Who need to hear you're okay?" " Heard that before" " Look, we think it's really important that the American public realizes you being held hostage here" "What do you think I'm gonna do?" "Put you on camera, ask you if you'd Iike to see Saddam be violated by a camel?" "Hey!" "Who let you guys in here?" "Oh, hi." "We're, uh, we're from CNN" " We were gonna do some interviews" " Like hell you are" "Leave us alone and get out" "None of us want anything to do with you here" "Stu, calm down." "These guys are fine" " I'm not calming down" " Oh, c'mon." "Don't be like that" "Yeah, nobody likes a scumbag" " What did you say to me?" " We're not gonna interview you, anyway" "We want the American side of the story more, uh..." " Sympathetic?" " Sympathetic." "Yeah" "Did you let this clown in here wilson?" "You got a Yankee score, there?" "Forget about the Yankees." "How about them Braves?" " Richard Roth, CNN." " Bob Vinton" " Hi" " Hi" "You are nothing but a bunch overpaid, bone picking vultures" "You're confusing us with CBS pal." "We're the underpaid vultures" "That's the problem with you people." "Everything's a joke to you" "But you tamper with people's lives." "Let me tell you something, pal" " Are you frightened?" " Sure I'm frightened" "I can't spend my days cowering behind these walls" "And I can t worry about things that I can't do anything about" "This is something I can't worry about" "My company sent me over here to do a job and I'm gonna get out here and do it" "I feel totally safe in Baghdad" "The Iraqis are wonderful people and I can't imagine them mistreating us at all" "Oh, hey,I understand your feeling though I don't agree." "I'm just saying" "Hey, where did your people go?" "And that's a cut" " That's terrific" " Anything else?" "No, that was great..." "I'd Iike to do a foIIow-up in a day or two" " What do you think?" " Sure" " Let me ask you something" " The guy has a right" "How do you sleep at night?" "You put that good man's life in danger" "How do you sleep at night?" " Sure" " Hey, thanks" "I sleep just fine" "Thanks!" "venezuela has vowed to increase oil production by fifteen percent" "But with Saddam Hussein now effectively controlling 20% of the world's oil supplies experts predict gas prices will continue to soar" "This is John HoIIiman reporting" " Nice piece, John" " Thanks" "You look nice today" "The arab nation is one nation, it is what I'm saying" "We do not want war, although we know we can fight" "I need a field assignment I'm going crazy" " well, you should talk that with Eason" " He told me to talk to you" " What did you have in mind,John?" " Baghdad" "You don't know that part of world" "well, I didn't know Tienanmen Square either" "Look, I've been on oil desk for a year." "I know the issues" "And that's a very important desk right now" "I don't think we have anybody to take your place" "Look, Ed, look, I've put in my time." "I deserve this" " hold on a second" " And if you become a human shield  at some strategic site?" "I pray every day that this crisis is over." "I sure miss my wife" "See you real soon, honey" "Not bad." "Listen, John." "Now, I hear you." "I know what you're saying" "And I'II keep it in mind." "But you're valuable here and, frankly, Baghdad..." " ... it doesn't fit you Iike a glove" " Ed!" " Did you see it?" " Terrific." "Good story" "John, Iet me give it some thought." "alright?" " Good work, by the way, The hand." " Thank you." " So how did it play?" " Terrific story, Robert" "Great, great work!" "We're out there alone with it !" "We aced everyone!" "well done!" " Thanks, Ed" " Great work" "The Iraqis are wonderful people." "I can't imagine them mistreating us" "And he'II have a YooHoo" "That's a chocolate drink." "I'II have a beer." "It's a malt beverage" "Thank you" "Look at this." "I didn't even get a moment to rest on my laurels" "So many reporters, one little story." "You have any notion to get us back in front?" "Saddam Hussein interview" "I'm building what they call strong relationship with the Ministry of Information" "Is that a good thing?" "Hey, Inky!" "Saddam let you back in, huh?" "Hey, he throws us out, no reason he lets us back, no reason" "He could double for my second wife" "Take a mini bath." "There" "DSB season has officially begun" " DSB?" " deadly Sperm Backup" "See, you on air guys never stick around long enough to feel the pain" " It's excruciating" " Robert, can I have a word?" "Yeah." "What's the matter?" "well, that's clear enough, I'II go get some tuna" "Bob Vinton's been taken prisonner by the Iraqis" "What?" "He went back to work and they got him." "He's missing" "More allegations of Iraqi brutality emerged today as Kuwaiti refugees testified before a congressional committee" "They took the babies out of incubators" "Took the incubators and left the children to die on the cold floor" "Other witnesses told of torture and violence at the hands of Saddam's troops" "You didn't kidnap that guy." "The Iraqis did" " I put him in jeopardy" " It was his call" "Doesn't let me off" "Egomaniac." "You think everything's about you" "well, Bob Vinton's not about you." "Bob Vinton is about Bob Vinton" "You think he's somewhere obsessing about you, Robert Wiener, right now?" "Trust me, Wierish, he has other fish to fry." "He's in his story and we're in ours" " Yeah, I don't like my story much" " That's alright." "You can work it out" " You didn't make me feel any better" " I know, I'm not after cheap emotion" "What are you after, Miss Formanek?" "A drink" "This is a CBS News exclusive report." "Dan Rather and Saddam Hussein" " Shit!" " Shit!" " That was my interview" " I never said you'd get it" "No, but you gave it to Dan Rather and CBS" "These decisions are made in a very high place" "I'm gonna jump from a very place" " Is it really so important?" " Yeah, it is really that important?" "It is to me" "It makes me look bad back home" "plus, if you give it to CNN." "We give it more time or we give it more play" "They would only give us half an hour" " Who?" " Your people." "CNN." " I, I said an hour" " And your people said half an hour" "You trusted some schmuck back in atlanta?" "Why didn't you come to me?" "Don' t dwell on it" "Other subjects." "Your equipment request for a fourwire telephone system and a flyaway" "Now, for the flyaway the answer is no" "But for the fourwire, looks promising that permission may be received" "Come on, this may be a significant thing for you" "There's something else" " Bob Vinton" " You knew him?" " Past tense?" " You know him?" "Yeah, I, uh, put him on TV and now he's missing" " Having a hard time sleeping" " Yeah, when it's your countrymen" "When it's my country, you don't care" "Oh, please." "Look, you and I are trying to prevent something here" "You take a guy like Bob Vinton that doesn't help anyone's cause" "Look, I just want to know:" "Is he safe?" "I want you to look at me and understand me" "I can tell you nothing about this man." "Is he safe?" "I can tell you nothing" "I couId do something for you" "What're you talking about?" "You've heard the outrageous allegations of Iraqi soldiers taking babies from incubators" "Yeah." "Are they true?" "Maybe I couId let you and your crew go to Kuwait" "No one but the Army is there." "You'd be the first" "For you" "Crank up this caravan,Scheherazade We're going to Kuwait." "Where's she?" " Oh, Jesus." "Sorry." " Hang on." "We're going to Kuwait?" " Yeah" " well, says who?" " Naji" " The guided tour?" "well, a couple of ground rules." "We can only cover the incubators story." "Three hospitals" "What, so now they're telling us what the story is?" "would you rather have Dan Rather report it?" "plus, we're in Kuwait." "You flip on the camera, it's news" " And Bob Vinton is safe" " How do you know?" "Naji sort of nodded his head" " Sort of nodded?" " Yeah" "You really trust this guy, don't you?" "Jesus" "Don't." "It's not worth it" "I can't believe we're staring at the rape of Kuwait with a camera and we're not shooting" "We'II get a story." "We're in Kuwait!" "Nobody's in Kuwait." "C'mon" "In the back." "In the back" "In the car." "Hurry." "In the back" "We're in hell" "This was the biggest forest in the history of the world:" "Dinosaurs" "Then it all died, rotted, turned into oil and now we're here" "It's basically we're fighting to see who gets to desecrate the cemetery" "Who gets the oil?" "No wonder there's been so much bad blood" "It's always been lousy karma to be a grave robber" "And if this obstetrician says the Iraqis have been eating babies" "These military types gonna riddle him with bullets, no?" "So what's he gonna say?" "Good morning, welcome to Kuwait?" "Listen, we're going to, Iike three different hospitals" "I m sure we'II get the truth" " Okay." "Let's do it" " Ready?" "AII the incubators are here." "None of our babies are missing" "But you're aware of the allegations, Doctor?" " I have heard these stories" " This sucks." "He's scared" " Yeah, this is bad" " I can tell you..." "Nothing has happened at this hospital that I know" "But at other hospitals?" " I cannot tell about other hospitals" " Finish." "Finish." "We go now" " What, to the other hospitals?" " No, no." "Back to Baghdad" " Hey!" "Hey!" "That wasn't part of the deal" " That is story" "Mazin, no, no, no, no, no, no, no you said we..." " Lay off!" " Hey, don't push it" "You knew this was going to happen, didn't you?" "Did you have it in thework the outset?" "How much do you get paid, anyway, for being reprehensible?" " Remember Farzad Bazoft?" " What, are you... threatening us, mister?" " He was a spy and we hanged him" " Non, he was a journalist..." " ... and you murdered him" " Hey, leave it alone" "Broadcasting on 9410 megahertz shortwave" " What's that on the radio?" " It's the BBC" "Turn it up ... by the official Iraqi News Agency that a CNN correspondent and crew" " It's us!" " ... were in Kuwait City today and determined there is no truth to the recent allegations..." " well, shit!" " Fuck!" "We didn't even file the story yet" "You know what just happened?" "We just became the story" " They're here!" "They're here!" " Let's move!" "NBC News." "Is it true you've just come from Kuwait?" " What is the situation in Kuwait?" " What about the incubators story?" "The Iraqi news media said you reported no babies were murdered" " Is that acurate?" " We haven't reported any such thing" "Anybody who says we did is a liar!" "Let me get him out of here" "Excuse me." "Excuse me." "Just leave him alone." "Leave him alone!" "hello." "Yeah, Naji, you're goddam right we have a problem!" "What the hell was that?" " clarify?" "What'd you mean, clarify?" " It's atlanta" "No, no, no, no, those were not the ground rules." "We never agreed to that" "It's atlanta" "Are you telling me that you could only report the hospital story" " ... and that the hospital's story is bullshit?" " That's what I'm telling you" "You must've gotten other subjects, You were in Kuwait, for Christ's sake" "We saw fucking pretty amazing stuff, we can talk about it" "We can't talk about it" "We didn't shoot it." "We can't report it..." "only the hospital story" "Those weren't the parameter you told us" " The parameters have just been recIarified" " RecIarified?" "We can report the story if we chose... but we lose any chance of a Saddam interview." "And we could get kicked out" "We would never have agreed those conditions" "This is the darkest day in the history network" "Look, it was a risk, we took a gamble, it didn't work out" "But we're here." "We're in for the Iong haul" "By the way, who the fuck cut my Saddam interview?" "We offered them an hour" "We are not handing Saddam Hussein unlimited access" " hold it!" " CBS gave him an hour" "Are they takin the fuckin heat?" "Or are we the whipping boys for the network?" " This is not about C..." " hold it, hold it!" "Look, any news organization would've jumped on this trip under the same circumstances, but in the future, if we see it we report it" "And if the Iraqis have a problem with that they can kick us out of the country" "But at Ieast they'II kick us out with our credibility intact." "Understood?" "What are you gonna do with the story?" "What do you think I'm gonna do with it?" "I'm gonna run it" "This is Tom Johnson, Robert" "I only got one question" "Yes" "Why were we the ones the Iraqis chose for the Kuwait story?" "What the fuck you looking at?" " I trusted you" " I've done what I had to do" " No, you set me up" " AII governments use the press" " bullshit!" "That's too easy" " No, that's reality" " I used you, you used me." "We're the same" " Oh, really?" "I'II tell you what" "I'm trying to cut through this bullshit and I'm trying to have an honest conversation" " Honest?" "You want honesty?" " Yeah, yeah!" "alright." "The American people don't care about the people in Kuwait" "This is about oil, for you" "For us, we care about very different issues" "Dignity." "Pride." "Much more important to us than oil" "More important to us than survival in this mortal realm" " Okay, so straighten us out, then" " alright" "An english general carved out a piece from our country after world War One and called it Kuwait" "There is a history in this region about which your people know nothing" " Okay, so straighten us out, Naji" " What do you mean?" "If we're getting it wrong, put President Saddam Hussein on the air" "And let him tell us what we're doing wrong" "My people don't understand your people so put your man on the air" " We did that with CBS, it changed nothing" " No, you've gotta keep doing it" "You just can't walk away." "Think about what's at stake here Naji" "Think about what we're talking about" "people are going to die" "people are going to die" "And I'II tell you exactly when they're gonna die" "They're gonna die when the talking stops" "So we gotta keep talking" "We gotta keep talkin 'til we're old men." "Okay?" "Because as soon as the talking stops, we're dead" "Look, maybe I'II never understand you" "Maybe we're not supposed to understand each other" "But as long as we stay talking, we stay alive" "It's worth an interview" " Hey, watch it!" " Empty pockets" "Hey!" "Pockets" " Reminds me of getting booked" " How many times you been arrested?" " In America?" " I'm getting stimulated" "Mr. Shaw, I welcome you in Baghdad" "Yes." "Can the car wait?" "I'm out right after the interview" "Are you guys hearing me?" "Yeah?" "Why don't we do a roll." "Hey, Bernie." "Good flight?" " Good flight, my brother" " Hi, Bernie." "Can I hook you?" "One one." "How are the levels on your end, Mark?" " One one one" " Good" "Okay, atlanta's good too." "They're rolling tape." "We're there, kids" "Here we go!" "Robert Wiener, CNN." "M. President, a pleasure." "Ingrid Formanek" " And, of course, Bernard Shaw" " M. President." "My pleasure" "Put a microphone on you here" "Nice tie." "Very nice tie." "Okay, we're ten" " Nine, eight, seven, six" " And five, Bernie" "Four... three... two..." "M. President, thank you very much for joining us" "almost three months have passed since this crisis began" "To prevent the embargo from destroying your country" "will you withdraw from Kuwait?" "If an embargo could force the Americans to withdraw from one of their states say, Hawaii, then maybe the Iraqis would consider withdrawing from Kuwait" "So your answer is no" "naturally" "Oh, my god, look at this." "We're looking in the eyes of a murderer" "He's murdered relatives!" "I've been there but I didn't act out" "Cheers, everyone." "Great job all around" "Mark, we've got a souvenir." "Come and see" " Do those things fly?" " No, I'm just collecting them" "Oh, I guess he gave up on barf bags" "Good, huh?" "Hey, Weiresh." "We did good" "It's no good." "Didn't say anything new" "We busted our ass to get a story, that's not news" "C'mon, if an interview with Saddam Hussein, isn't news, what is?" "War" "What we're confronting is a classic bully who thinks he can get away... with kicking sand in the face of the world" "But Saddam is making the mistake of his life" "We're not here on some exercice, this is a real world situation" "And we're not walking away until our mission is done: until the invader is out of Kuwait" "theoretically, you have me for another hour." "I already briefed HoIIiman" "Want me to grill anybody or may I head to the airport?" "When the story breaks, you're gonna really hate yourself for not being here" "No, I'm not a regretful person" "Anyway, if I'm gonna die, I'd rather die in israel" "Nobody dies while I'm in charge" " Where's Bob Vinton?" " I don't know." "But I know he's all right" "So they tell you." "Lest you forget they always tell you what you want to hear" "Then they round the Jews up. always do that, too." "When in doubt round up the Jews" "Goodbye Richard..." " I think you're really smart" " well, goodbye, Judy" "I think I'm really smart too" "Richard, safe travels, amigo." "Good working with you, man." "Take care" " Thanks" " Safe journey" "God be with you, guys." "I mean that." "I'II call you from jerusalem" "You're a brave man." "Don't ever forget that, Dick" " Don't call me Dick" " alright, Dick" "Hey, I wonder what's happening over there." "Where's Fatima?" "Fatima!" "Can you come over here?" "Can you see what's happening over there?" " Come on, Iet's go" " Okay" "Say this:" " Pretty good" " What'd I just say?" "Don't shoot." "I'm a journalist" "The hostages have been released I heard it on the radio!" "AII foreigners can go!" " I can go!" " Wait, wait!" "Go to the AI-Rasheed and tell John HoIIiman to meet us at the airport" " Okay" " Airport" " Saddam Hussein is now saying" " Some amazing scenes here in Baghdad" "So." "These are our freed hostages" " You ready to work,John ?" " I think so" "well, better get started, Mister HoIIiman." "You're our man in Baghdad now" " John HoIIiman CNN" " We're rolling" " May I ask your name, sir?" " Raymond Page." "St Louis" "By all measures Mr. Page, you must be a happy man today" "May I ask you what you were doing when you found out you were free to go home?" "I was shaving." "See?" "I actually cut myself" " Where were you being held, sir?" " It was just an office" "Were you aware of how many people were in the building?" " Bob Vinton" " Do I know you?" "I'm Robert Wiener, CNN" " I did an interview with you" " Oh." "Interview." "Yeah, hi" "You're alright?" "Oh, yeah." "Yeah." "They just moved us to this office building." "Not that bad" " You know, I'm really glad you're alright" " Thanks" "Yeah." "Cause, I, heard, and.." "I, I ..." "Excuse me." "I gotta catch a plane" " Excuse me" " Sure" "Yeah." "Yeah!" " Hey, take it easy, okay?" " You too" " Hey!" "He's doing pretty good" " He's alright" " Who?" " Bob Vinton" " How do you know?" " I just saw him" "You're kidding." "should I get the crew?" "No, no, no." "Forget that!" "I mean, he's alright" " Hey, You okay?" " Yeah" "I was just standing there, you know?" "Okay" " You ready to go back to work?" " Yeah" "Okay." "Come on 23 hostages finally made their way through customs, and the other side" "Does this mean Saddam is backing down?" "I don't think so" "What I'm hearing is he's got 500 000 troops in Kuwait" "Looks like we're going in." "It could be a matter of weeks" "well, we're still there, Tom." "Robert's inside." "We're in position" "Today President Bush reiterated security council resolution 678 ... stipuIating that Iraq leave Kuwait by January 15th" "Better get Arnett ready" "It further authorizes all necessary means against Irak if it faiIs to comply" "We're dealing with hitler revisited" "When you've done what he's done" "I don't see that there is room for concession or there's room for giving something to save face" "That's not the way you treat with aggression" "We shall not accept to be treated as a nation as underdogs" "We are a proud nation and we would Iike to be treated in a dignified and just manner" "Oh, that's scary." "You know, they're talking through us now" "Both sides..." "They're talking through CNN" "Yeah, they're talking, but they're not listening What the fuck are we doing here?" " well, it's called our job, Wierish" " really?" "Grabbing sound bites" "Grab a little sound bite of Saddam, you grab a little sound bites of Bush" "That's not enough" "What happened to trusting the audience?" "What if you don't give tools they need to understand the story?" "We've got a role to play here" "We don't solve the world's problems." "We report them" "really?" "Is that what it's comes down to?" "Just keep those cameras rolling and wait for the bombs to drop, nice fucking job" "This guy tells me they're gonna close all the airspace." "No flights in or out" "The deadline's January 15th They're mining the roads to Basra" " The bathtub" " The bathtub?" "The bathtub." "It's cast iron." "Safest place to be if a bomb hits the building" "I'm too young for this shit" " What shit?" " Dying" " Come on." "Enjoy the party" " Mark, listen!" "You should get outa here" "Why me?" "Because clearly yo have not had a life, and it wouId be particularily tragic for you to die" " At least, I, you know" " You think you've done things I haven't done?" "Yes" " Like what?" " Let's dance" "tell me the truth now" "You and I have gotten drunk together in ten countries" " Yeah" " We've covered a million stories" "Eaten up by loneliness, thrown inhibitions out the window" "And you know I think you're great looking" "well well" "So, you know, I've gotten drunk, passed out... had dreams" "I mean, I think they were dreams but like really realistic" " Are you making a pass?" " No." "I'm asking you a question" " Did we ever?" " No" " Never?" " No!" "Cause it really really seemed..." "You're sure?" " almost?" " Oh, almost, yeah." "Two or three times" "You know, everybody thinks we did, do" "Fuck 'em." "Fuck 'em" "Fuck 'em" "I got a wife and kids" " Wierish?" " Yeah?" "There's a lotta kinds of love ain't there?" "Yeah" "There are a Iot of kinds" "I have a surprise for you" "You requested a fourwire, and Mr. Naji arranged it for you" "well, thank M. Naji, as will I. And thank you" "well, fuck me with a hot pauper!" "M. Naji says my government says you are fair and balanced" " I go now." "Enjoy." " Thanks" " Enjoy." " Thank you" "Oh, Saddam Hussein thinks us fair and balanced." "well, that's one for the resume" " What's it do?" " It's a dedicated phone line" "There's no switchboards, no operators." "Runs straight under the desert to Amman" "Then from there boing!" "Which means, ladies and gentlemen, we just went live" " CIink that baby up Mark" " Turn on the radio" "Baghdad to atlanta" "Baghdad to atlanta" "well, that's anticlimactic" "We're being bombed." "There's bombs falling every..." "people are screaming." "There's limbs flying out the window" " The fourwire!" "The fourwire" " Baghdad is that you?" " There we go" " Baghdad, what did you say?" "Go ahead." "What did you say?" "You're gonna have to monitor this thing a little more closely" " will do" " Ed." "I'm gonna get Ed." "Ed!" "Let's go with crisis and make that Persian gulf" "MiddIe-American might think we're bombing Mexico" "Wiener got the fourwire We've got a direct link to Baghdad" " He's on now" " Good, good" "That means if it comes to war we'II still be able to report" "well, I hope so, but the first thing the bombers will go after are telecommunications" "No, this fourwire isn't routed through the grid" "It's a cable underneath the desert." "It's protected" "The Iraqis agreed with that?" "They think we're talking with our bureau in Amman, I don't think they tought it through" " And nobody else has it?" " We're the only ones" " Baghdad's online." " Robert?" "Can you hear me?" "That we can, Ed." "What do you think?" "well, if the shit hits the fan, we should have a distinct advantage" "Yeah, well, you're gonna have to have somebody on your end listening in" "We'II have somebody" " Robert?" " Tom" " I just wanted to say congratulations" " Thank you" "You deceived us" " What do you mean?" " The fourwire" "It allows you to speak directly to atlanta" " How did you find that out?" " We are the Ministry of Information" " You gonna take it back?" " No" "We trust you... to use it responsibly" " Does that make you uneasy?" " No" "We keep them talking, there's still hope" "Isn't that what you said?" "God willing" "RegrettabIy, in over six hours" "I heard nothing that suggested to me ... any iraqi flexibility whatsoever" "We pass the brink at midnight January 15th" "Oh, shit" "How do you rate a direct line?" "That's what I'd Iike to know" "The answer's obvious." "The Iraqis know they have Wiener in their pockets" "You know what?" "That is totally uncalled for" "Is there some special kissass room at the Ministry I don't know about?" " Yeah..." "Naji" " No idea what's going on here" "Oh, !" "Naji's on the phone Naj" "really?" "..." "Good No, I'II make the call, Great." "Okay" " What?" " Oh, great" "What?" "What?" "And we're off the air" "Bernie?" "Bernie!" "Bernie" "You gentlemen look rather agitated" "The Iraqis are dangling an interview with Saddam Hussein" "In Baghdad, at the deadline January 15th" "could be very dangerous" "But if Saddam is gonna back down, it's gonna be during that interview" "It's up to you, Bernie." "It's your call" "Make it so" "Maybe he's already checked in" " Oh, there he is." "Peter!" "Arnett!" " Ah, Ingrid!" "You gorgeous creature!" " How are you?" " Hey, Robert" " How are you?" " This is fantastic!" "incredible!" " Meet Mick Robertson" " Nick" " My technical ace in the hole." " Ingrid Formanek" " So this is it, eh?" "Opening night" " You bet" "I can't get over this setup." "first rate hotel, great lounge" " What did I tell you?" " Decent food" " Terrific views of the city" " while there is still a city" "What more could you want from an enemy capital?" " This is much than anything in Vietnam" " Oh, yeah" "I Ioved Vietnam." "I cried when that goddamn war ended" "Hey, got you a case of Tanqueray, from the BBC guys" " You make me feel at home, Ingrid" " There's a bomb shelter in the basement" "Bomb shelter?" "Hah." "Fat lot good" "A 2 thousand pound bomb with a laser guidance system would cut this place in two" "They won't bomb the AI-Rasheed" "That's right." "They won't bom AI-Rasheed." "Not on purpose, anyway" "It' s bad P.R. to kill reporters and hostages and the like" "You still think you're indestructible, don't you?" "Here" "Thirty years as a combat journalist Never a mark on me" "Yeah?" "That could change on January 15th" "It's amazing it can still come to this!" "High Noon" "With George Bush as Gary Cooper" "They prepare." "They're getting ready." "War" "What must be done, will be done" "Not for you or for me." "For the greater glory of allah" "It is all written in a book somewhere, yes?" "Who will live." "Who will die." "Who will awake in Paradise" " Do you believe in Paradise?" " No" "Ah." "We do" "What's that phrase again, Mr. Robert?" "The final seconds of the countdown to possible war ticked off on the Baghdad railway station clock this morning in Iraq" "That deadline has now expired The mood here is somber" "Iraqis are preparing as best they can to defend their property" "The famous Baghdad downtown market is virtually shut down" "Stores are locked up and shuttered as shop owners wait fruitIessIy for business" "Some commodities are in demand." "candles and protective tape for windows" "Because of fears of U.S. air strikes on the capital" "Peter Arnett, CNN, Baghdad" "He says: "I want to shake your hand" I said: "Why"?" "He says: "well most guys just leave her hanging out..."" "The kids have got the sniffles." "We just got the call from Washington" " Are you sure?" " Yeah" " Who's got the sniffles?" " The kids!" " I'm outta here" " Shit." "Come on, come on" " That deadline has now expired" " Okay" " Naji says he's still working on it" " They're cutting it awfully close" "January 15th is just another day on the calendar." "That's what the man said" " We'II get this interview" " Hey, guys, something's up" "Everybody's saying we gotta get out of here." "Something about the sniffles" " SniffIes?" " Yeah" " SniffIes." "Bingo." "They're coming." " This is it" "ABC and CBS are pulling out." "BBC and ITN haven't decided" "Most of the print guys left last night, NBC's on the fence" "If the phones go out in Baghdad, we've still got the fourwire" "We could be the only ones able to report" "I lost two reporters at the Times, I'm not gonna go through that again" "Excuse me, Tom." "It's the White House on Iine 2." "It's the President" "Hey, send the bill to New York Hey, send the bill to New York!" "alright, we have a 727 with one hundred and twenty six places" "I strongly suggest you take advantage of the opportunity" "This will be the final evacuation" "Look, I know this isn't a press conference..." "Look, I'm gonna say this one more time." "We are pulling out" "Exit visas and other domentation are your responsibility" "Use your heads, people." "Stay in Baghdad, you may find yourself dead" "Look, it s a terrific opportunity Robert but no story is worth risking your life" "No, no story is worth risking your life" "But... this is the story of a lifetime" "Look, I'm not telling you what to do, I don't know what you should do" " What would you do, Ed?" " Shit, Robert." "What do you want me to say?" "I just spoke with President Bush." "He's talking to me about taking you out of there" "What about Ted Turner?" "He said we're an international news service, and we'II continue to broadcast" "Ed, can you pick up the phone?" "What do you think, Robert?" "I'm gonna stay." "I'm gonna ride it out" "Hey, this is my walk on the moon" "I've seen this panic before Saigon." "Same thing" "White House spooked the shit out of everybody" "The reporters got the helicopters and got the hell out" "Robert, you know what I'm talking about" "Course they don't want us here." "If we're here..." "The White House can't control the story It goes to the world live" "But I say we stay, and report and prevail" "Okay." "Two things." "First of all, remember where we are" "We're within walking distance of the Iraqi parliament" "The presidential palace, the Ministry of Defense, telecommunications centers" "AII of these are prime targets, every one" "So what are we gonna do?" "Okay." "Second, the folks at CNN say the decision to stay or leave is ours" "It s up to us." "Each of us" " Great." "So we're free to stay" " Or go" "well, I'm staying, and that settled and any journalist worth his salt..." " Hey, Pete" " I'm in, no matter who's out." "I'II be outside" "Okay." "Chartered plane'II be ready to go in the morning Bernie will be on it" "He's the Washington anchor." "They want him in his chair Monday morning, and that's where he's gonna be" "It's pretty clear there's not gonna be an interview" "As for the rest of us, it's your call" " So?" " well, I'II stay." "I just got here" "I don't know." "If you really don't need me, I would Iike to..." "I just, I got people at home." "I got people at home" "alright" "Okay, so you're gonna leave in the morning with Bernie" " Yeah" " Good." "I'II stay" " What?" " I'm staying" "No." "Wait, wait, no" " Then I'm staying" " Why?" "I, I thought we had to make a decision" "Yeah, but you've done nothing but complain since we got here" "I was venting." "I'II stay." "I don't want to miss the fireworks" "Nick's here." "He can do your job" " Thanks for the ego boost." " No, no, You've been great" "I'm just saying that I think we can afford to ... barely... get along without you" "alright" " So you're leaving?" " Yeah" "Good." "John?" " I'II do what you do" " I'm staying" " Can I make an observation?" " No." "You have nothing to say" "You and I need to have a private conversation" "Can the rest of you, uh leave?" "I need to speak with Ingrid" " How'd it fall out, gang?" " We're leaving" " We're staying" " We don't know about Ingrid yet" "Oh, look at 'em run." "Hurry!" " What's this about?" " You know what it's about" " You're gonna stay" " No, actually, I was gonna go" " You were?" " Uh huh" "I'm not the suicidal type." "I suggest you go too" "Nothing you can do to stop that, especially dying" "I can't go" "Saigon?" "Goddamn it, Robert, that was a different war, at a different time" "I'm not gonna walk away from a great story." "Not again" "God." "Egomaniac." "This is not just about you." "You have a wife and kids" "I have nothing." "Look, you go and I'II stay" " That's not gonna work" " well then, we'II both stay" "Listen to me" "How many times have you caught me before I hit the ground?" "You've done nothing but protect me since the time I met you." "This is different" "This is different" "I want you to stay" "But I'm asking you to go" " So?" " Oh, I'm taking that flight out of here" "I Iike shithoIes, not deathtraps" " You sure?" " Oh, Peter Look at me." "I'm no hero" "See you after the war" "Oh!" "God!" " Wiener!" " You alright?" "Yeah." "I'm totally screwed!" "You're stuck with me" "This is it!" "This is it!" " The fourwire!" " I have it, Peter" " Are we still on?" " It's up" " tell em what' s goin' down here" " hello, atlanta?" "atlanta, come to us" " Phones are dead." "Man, that was fast!" " There is something happening outside" " holy Christ!" " hello, atlanta, hello?" "Camera in the window!" "I need a camera in the window come on!" " Robert!" " ...in Baghdad something is happening" " Bernie's on the line" " Get a map up!" "Get a map!" "Get a picture of Bernie up there!" "And tell French that we are going live to Baghdad" "Bernie's on the phone!" "He says something's happening..." "We have to go to Baghdad, Secretary." "We're going to Bernard Shaw in Baghdad" "hello, atlanta." "There is something happening outside" "Peter..." "Peter..." "Peter Arnett is here with me" "Peter come join us so we can describe to the viewers what we're seeing outside the window" "The skies over Baghdad have been illuminated" "Give me the sticks!" "Give me the sticks!" "There are bright flashes all over the sky" " Peter, are we on?" " Let me get that other mic" "well, there's antiaircraft fire going up into the sky" "Starbursts in the black sky." "Tremendous lightning in the sky" "A IightningIike effect" " I've got the night scope on" " Now sirens are sounding for the first time" "Robert!" "Robert!" "We need to get the crew down to the shelter!" " The noise is just deafening" " Okay" "AII of you, all of you to the shelter!" " Go with Ingrid !" " What are you doing?" " I'm staying" " Then I'm stayin too" "Something like 200 guns firing from the rooftops around us here" "Now we can see explosions in the distance." "Huge flashes of light" "Robert!" "Robert!" "What are we gonna do?" "Fuck!" "Everybody nonessentiaI get down to that bomb shelter myself included!" " Right now!" " Come, Mick!" " Do it!" " Judy!" " I'II be back!" " Don't worry." "The war'II stil be here" "This is extraordinary" "The bombs are falling and the lights are still on." "Ooh!" "Camera's on automatic!" "And we're rolling!" "The lights all over downtown Baghdad are still on" " Peter, Peter!" " We have John HoIIiman here" "John, what can you see?" "Good evening, gentlemen." "Or rather good morning." "This is John HoIIiman" " That's it!" "The fourwire is dead" " We've lost the line" " What happened?" " What's going on?" "It's dead" "Coming back to David French" "We've lost that for the moment." "Back to the Pentagon again" " Quick!" "plug in a battery!" "Quick" " I think it's on this desk!" "John!" " Battery!" " I can't see!" " Where is it?" "Where is it?" " I got it!" "It's over the desk" " Know how to plug it in?" " Yeah." "On the Ieft hand side, Bernie." "Can you see it?" " We're back up" " hallelujah" " They're back up!" "Baghdad's back" " alright." "We're going back to Baghdad" "Right now" "This is John HoIIiman reporting from Baghdad..." "holy cow!" "That was a huge air burst just filling the sky" "That was the buggest blast of air so far" "I'm, I'm, uh moving away from the window now" "If you're still with us you can hear the bombs now" "They're hitting the center of the city" "What's that noise?" " Is that just noise on the line or the bomb?" " I don't know." "I'm checking" "Sounds like the goddamn hotel is under attack." "Check on Wiener and the crew" " Are you alright?" "Everybody here?" " Yeah, I think so." "Watch that girl!" "Keep your heads down!" "Let us in!" "Let these people in!" "Just let these people in, please Come on!" "Go, go, go, go, go, go!" "I gotta go!" "I gotta go, man!" "Go!" "CouIdn't get the flight" "We, I gather, have a report now from the America cable News Network" "Their reporters, John HoIIiman and Peter Arnett, are in Baghdad" "The last explosion was in the western part of the city, near the Defense Ministry" " Bernie?" " If this is surgical bombing" "I don't like being this close to the operating table" "Good one, Bernie" "You killed us, Wiener!" "You own this war" "I have the sense that people shooting towards the sky and they are not aware or they cannot see what they are shooting at" "Bet you wish you were up there" "No" "This is not about me" " Are you alright, mate?" " Yeah, I'm alright" "We're seeing outside the government building downtown" "At this moment there are plumes in the darkness" "black smoke rising..." "John!" "Bernie!" "soldiers!" "Hide!" " Bernie!" "get down!" " John!" "Get behind the desk!" " We've lost Baghdad" " Go to Roth in tel Aviv" "We've been advised to wear these masks" "However there seems to be little danger of gas at this time" "This is Richard Roth" "I'm sorry to inform you that we lost contact with the CNN reporters at the Rasheed hotel" "Fuck!" "Let me through!" "Let me through!" "Fuck!" "Good evening, gentlemen!" "Yes, that's all well and good but, I do not speak Arabic!" "You go to shelter now" " shelter?" " shelter" "No shelter!" "No shelter!" "shelters frighten me!" "It's better up here!" "Can't you see?" "It's safe!" "It's good up high!" "I feel safe here!" "It's good up high Don't you feel it?" "Or we can all go up on the roof!" "gentlemen, gentlemen, please!" "We can go up on the roof!" "No?" "well then, I'II light a candle for peace" " Oh, dear!" "That was one for the Academy" " I thought you were insane" "well, I must be, or what the hell am I doing here?" " You guys alright?" "We were worried" " Yeah, we're fine" " How's everyone downstairs?" " They're good." "They're in the shelter" " Robert, you alright?" " Yeah" " Are we still on?" "The Fourwire!" " It's up." "It's up" " We're back on the air now." " We're back!" "The last explosion was in the western part of the city" " Ed!" "Tom!" "Come look at this!" " Near the Defense Ministry ... fact that throughout the night, CNN was the only, news operation in the country that was able to hang onto its telephone  the only telecommunications of there now continue to belong to CNN" "But what we have now, again reported by CNN from Baghdad" "The very enterprising Bernard Shaw, representing the very enterprising CNN" "The best reporting that I've seen on what transpired from Baghdad was on CNN" "CNN used to be called "The little network that could"" "... but it 's no Ionger a little network" "I'm gonna stick this microhone outside the window now so you can hear some of these explosions and the antiaircraft fire that goes with them" "Now, there's a very bright flash near a refinery building" "There's much activity on the ground there" "Thick balls of black smoke arriving from the city from government buildings" " ..." "barely a mile away" " Eight to ten white sharp explosions" "obviously aimed at destroying that particular refinery" "That was the explosion closest to the presidential palace here in downtown Baghdad" "See as though the waves of bombing are coming every fifteen minutes now" "It's... five am here at Baghdad" "I honestly don't know what time it is back in the States but I imagine around this time" "I would probably be on my desk eating a turkey sandwich on whole wheat" "Maybe a tweIvegrain bread and, uh..." "And we can't assess the damage officially There's no word from Iraqi officials" "But from our vantage point here on the ninth floor of the AI Rasheed the devastation seems formidable" "What were buildings now are shells, Iike boxes crushed by someone's giant hands" "Smoke rising everywhere" "The streets are full of debris and devoid of a living soul" "None of us here I am sure, will ever forget this night or what happened here" "This is Peter Arnett with Bernard Shaw, John HoIIiman" "Producers Robert Wiener and Ingrid Formanek and our crew of Judy Parker, Nick Robertson and Mark BieIIo" "Returning you to the relative tranquility of the United States" "Ladies and gentlemen, we are off the air" "What the hell was I talking about?" "A turkey sandwich?" "You were making me hungry!" "Don't worry, Bernie, it was real, it was stunning." "It was great." "Great" "folks, it's Ed here..." "And..." "I think I can speak for all of us when..." "When I say  It was simply incredible..." "And, you can rest assured that you are the envy ... of every journalist around the world." "congratulations" "There..." "I mean, there really aren't words to..." "I'II see you soon." "Get some rest" " Great job, Robert" " Thanks, Bernard" "We're gonna set up a rotation" "Everyone's gonna need sleep" "Jesus" "Hey listen, everybody." "I mean, it's great work" "Thank you..." "Thank you." "Oh, shit!" "Move away from the equipments now!" "Robert, I'm sorry but I have orders" "You must stop your reporting immediately" "You can record stories but we must review them" "Naji, that's just not gonna work I mean, we're into it now, man" " Robert!" "These are my orders" " Baghdad, this is atlanta!" " Baghdad." "Baghdad, this is atlanta" " Can I just...?" "Baghdad, this is atlanta." "Come in." "This is John HoIIiman reporting from Baghdad" "Our executive producer, Robert Wiener has an Iraqi official here" "Robert can you tell us what's happening here?" "Yeah." "unfortunately, we've been ordered by the Iraqi government to cease transmitting" "We've been informed that any future reports are subject to censorship" "Stop that!" "Under these new regulations we cannot report that the latest attack is continuing and that black clouds of smoke can be seen on the direction of Saddam international Airport" "But the Ministry of Information has informed us that we cannot report any of this without their approval" "Stop it!" "This is Robert Wiener, CNN, reporting live from Baghdad" " That is enough!" " Okay." "It's off." "It's off" "See?" "It's off" "The caravan can't stop." "Do not let the driver stop" "Air Force knows you're crossing, but it's war." "people forget shit" "And if you have to pee, pee in a bottle" " Yeah, but my aim's not that good" " The cars have to stay in order" "It's white car, it's blue car it's red car" "blue car, red car, white car" " What did I just say?" " Wiener, I'II be alright" "One minute" "Thirty hours, I'II be home" "Kicking back with a glass of StoIi" "Watching all of this on television" "Thank you" "Don't stay too long" " Your family?" " They're safe." "Thank you" " So, you're leaving?" " Yeah." "It's time for me to go" " And we have become friends" " Yeah" "You kept your word and you've been fair" " I can't ask for more than that from a friend" " And you got your story" " Yeah." "Not the one I wanted" " Isn't it?" "I will see you when this war is over"