THE ODYSSEY OF GOLDBERG’S ‘THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE’
AZG Armenian Daily
04/05/2006
“Public television’s attempt to illuminate a dark period of European
history is demonstrating that in the world of documentaries, few
topics are black and white. ‘The Armenian Genocide’ began airing this
week on dozens of PBS stations, including nine in the nation’s top
TV markets. Josh Belzman, cover producer on the MSNBC.com, writes on
April 23.
“We chose to air ‘The Armenian Genocide’ based on its merits and
because we felt it was balanced and presented both sides of the story,”
said Lucy Sholley, director of media relations of the WGBH station
in Boston. “We felt the documentary stood on its own.”
KCTS in Seattle aired the film and the panel discussion. Program
manager Eric Maki said in a statement that the station wanted to give
viewers as much information as possible to “make an informed decision”
and “better understand the world around them.”
On April 24 Goldberg screened his documentary at Hollywood’s Egyptian
Theatre before an audience estimated at 1,000. “I didn’t want
this story to not have a chance to be shown to the Armenians in Los
Angeles,” he said. “It’s a story that many of them had taken part in,
through their involvement or just being connected with it.”
Through tattered photos, letters and celebrity voiceovers, the
documentary created by New York-based filmmaker Andrew Goldberg
depicts a Turkish campaign of expulsion, rape, and murder that led
to the deaths of an estimated 1.5 million ethnic Armenians between
1915 and 1920.
As they come of age, a growing number of Armenian Americans are
demanding the government recognize their ancestors’ deaths as genocide,
Josh Belzman writes.
Filmmakers and Grammy-nominated bands with Armenian roots, such
as System of a Down, have staged benefits calling attention to the
issue. The band and other activists are scheduled to meet with members
of Congress next week to again press their case.
“Is change near? Another look at history casts doubt: Nearly every
year federal legislation is introduced.
All of the measures have either died in the House or languished in
the Senate,” he concludes.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
