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ABC’s ‘Path to 9/11’ Spurs Protest from Berger

Sep 11, 2006  •  Post A Comment

Former Clinton National Security Adviser Sandy Berger, who criticized the accuracy of ABC’s “Path to 9/11” before it aired, said Monday the edited version the network broadcast was flawed.

Mr. Berger didn’t say whether he’ll take the issue to court.

In an indication that ABC’s image problems from the series may not end with the series’ airing, Mr. Berger issued a statement Monday condemning the network. His comment was the first to emerge after the broadcast of the first part of the two-part series.

The original version of the show featured a segment in which Mr. Berger is pictured slamming down a phone after refusing to order the capture or killing of Osama bin Laden. The phone-slamming was edited out, along with some other changes ABC made. Berger said the scene still misrepresented the facts.

“ABC had an opportunity to edit this film to eliminate scenes that were untrue and in many cases directly contradicted by the 9/11 Report. They did not do so,” Berger said in a statement.

“It is an inaccurate and misleading portrayal of the Clinton Administration’s commitment to fighting Al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden. In particular, a scene depicting a meeting involving [CIA director] George Tenet and me about a proposed operation in Afghanistan against bin Laden never occurred-nor did anything like it ever occur-as we have repeatedly told ABC.”