Sep 16, 2008 6:39 pm US/Eastern
"Obsession" DVD Raises Concerns Over Propaganda
One Newspaper In North Carolina Refused To Circulate The DVD
MIAMI (CBS4) ―
The documentary, "Obsession: Radical Islam's War Against the West," a controversial DVD distributed nationally inside certain newspapers, is being alluded to as inflammatory by Muslim groups in South Florida, showing scenes encouraging children to become suicide bombers.
Altaf Ali was shocked when he opened his Sunday paper and found a copy of the DVD. He is the director of the Florida Chapter of the Council on American Islamic Relations. "That's not what a newspaper is about," Ali said, "A newspaper should never be about promoting propaganda."
He explained to CBS4 Reporter Ileana Varela that he has gotten numerous calls from Muslims worried the DVD will promote hate and bigotry against their community.
"It's full of violence," Ali said, "and full of hate. I'm fearful for my children that someone might be upset, may become influenced by this documentary and take out the anger against my children."
"Obsession" had been inserted into newspapers aimed at voters in the battleground states in order to raise security concerns ahead of all other issues in the election.
There has been no traditional distributors picking up the film, and this month, it was distributed in more than 70 newspapers across the nation, including
The Miami Herald, the Sun Sentinel and the Palm Beach Post. At least one newspaper in South Carolina decided not to distribute the DVD, calling it among other things "divisive."
The Clarion Fund paid millions of dollars to get the DVD out. It's a non-profit organization that claims to focus on national security and is listed with contact information below the credits. On their website, the makers insist they are not Anti-Muslim. At the beginning of the film, it points out "It's important to remember, most Muslims are peaceful and do not support terror."
The film itself is not new. The DVD release was timed to coincide with the seventh anniversary of the terrorist strikes of Sept. 11, 2001. The DVD bills itself as a "preview version," with a full-length version available for purchase.
In response to the controversy, a Miami Herald spokesperson said, "We reviewed the DVD, the wrapping, the website and the materials posted and we opted to not enter the realm of censorship."
(© MMVIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
