Film and TV Series

2023

GHOSTS OF BEIRUT: SHOWTIME

Peter Bergen was a producer

2022

The Fall of Osama bin Laden, National Geographic

Peter Bergen was the correspondent and a producer.

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2020

BIN LADEN’S HARD DRIVE, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC

Peter Bergen was the correspondent and a producer.

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2020

THE LONGEST WAR, SHOWTIME

Peter Bergen was a producer

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2018

THE ROAD TO 9/11, HISTORY

https://tv.apple.com/us/show/road-to-911/umc.cmc.4iy7ixlkxol8phs1k2ejv1za7

Peter Bergen was a consultant.

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2018

SIX, HISTORY

Peter Bergen was a consulting producer.

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2017

LEGION OF BROTHERS, CNN Films

Bergen was producer, premiered at Sundance and was broadcast on CNN. The film was nominated for an Emmy in 2018.

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2016

“We Got Him”: President Obama, Bin Laden, and the Future of the War on Terror, CNN

For this documentary, in addition to speaking with President Barack Obama in his first sit-down interview in the Situation Room, Bergen also conducted the first in-depth interview with the architect of the bin Laden raid, Admiral William H. McRaven.

2016

Homegrown: The Counter-Terror Dilemma, HBO

Bergen is executive producer and the film is based on his book “United States of Jihad

A new HBO documentary takes a look at the changing face of terrorism in the U.S. almost fifteen years after 9/11.

Homegrown: The Counter-Terror Dilemma, which premieres on Feb. 8, is the latest HBO documentary from Gregory Barker, who also made Manhunt: The Search for Osama bin Laden.

The new 90-minute feature examines the threat of self-radicalized individuals in the age of ISIS, the challenge of detecting plots that can spring up wherever there’s an IP address — and the danger of overstating the threat to a public saturated by warnings about terror.

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2014

“American War Generals” Airing September 2014 National Geographic

Media Coverage and Reviews for “American War Generals”

September 11, 2014
“War Generals of Today”: Blunt Talk from the Battlefield
USA Today

“American War Generals…. differs from what we normally read or see about the current wars. Today’s generation of generals talk candidly about prosecuting ambiguous wars with often-flawed strategies.”

September 10, 2014
‘Generals’ dissects Iraq and Afghanistan wars
New York Daily News

“American War Generals” is, for all practical purposes, an autopsy of the Afghanistan and Iraq wars, narrated almost entirely by the generals who led the American military in the years before and during those wars.”

“At the same time, almost none of “American War Generals” feels like bashing, finger-pointing or partisan blame-casting. It’s more like an academic dissection, something you might hear in a class at West Point.”

“No future leader should be allowed to start a war without seeing this special.”

September 11, 2014
‘American War Generals’ a sobering reflection on U.S. failures in Iraq
Militarytimes.com; Armytimes.com; Airforcetimes.com

“As the U.S. escalates its campaign against jihadists in Iraq and Syria, a new documentary offers a cautionary tale about putting too much faith in technology and forgetting hard-fought lessons from the past.”

September 13, 2014
This Weekend’s “American War Generals” is a Must-Watch
Dailycaller.com

“The National Geographic Channel’s “American War Generals” is ambitious. And it is also fantastic.”

“And despite covering 50 years of military history, “War Generals” tells their stories, not just as generals, but as humans.”

“The film doesn’t merely entertain, though. It also educates.”

September 9, 2014
The Washington Premiere of “American War Generals”
Washingtonian

“It plays like a mixtape of the greatest hits, failures, and disputes of the past half century of American wars, but the sobering part of a new documentary, American War Generals, is its undeniable relevance to right now.”

September 16, 2014
Small Wars Continue to Drain America of its Power
Yahoo News

“A most astonishing and brilliant documentary.”

2013

“Manhunt” documentary on HBO

Bergen is executive producer and the film is based on his book “Manhunt: The Ten-Year Search for Osama bin Laden, from 9/11 to Abbottabad.” Won Emmy for best documentary.

The Navy SEALs’ raid on Abbottabad, Pakistan on May 1, 2011 took 40 minutes. The CIA’s hunt for Osama bin Laden took two decades. MANHUNT is a riveting tale of espionage and the moral choices of war, as revealed for the first time by the real insiders who led the CIA’s secret war against al-Qaeda and Osama bin Laden. Directed by Greg Barker. The Wall Street Journal review described the film as “a riveting story.” One of “Summer’s Must-See Documentaries”  said Rolling Stone. “’Manhunt’…presents an evenhanded, sometimes powerful conversation about subjects like torture, targeted killings and the roots of terrorism.” wrote the New York Times.

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2011

“The Last Days of Osama bin Laden” documentary on National Geographic television

Bergen was correspondent.

The story of the raid  that led to the death of Osama bin Laden; reported from Abbottabad, Pakistan where bin Laden lived the last five years of his life and from Washington DC where President Obama made the decision to launch the risky raid.

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2007

“Mission Ops: Assignment IEDs.” documentary on Discovery television.


Bergen was correspondent.

Improvised Explosive Devices, or IEDs as they are more commonly known, are THE terrorist weapon of choice. But what are IEDs? How do they work? And how can they be stopped? Mission Ops: Assignment IED’s supplies the answers as renowned terrorism expert, Peter Bergen, leads viewers through a complete IED briefing. From New York to the Middle East and beyond, Bergen illustrates the history and development of the IED threat and the emerging technologies evolving to fight them.

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2006

“In the Footsteps of Osama bin Laden” documentary on CNN


Bergen was one of the producers and the film was based on
Bergen’s book “The Osama bin Laden I Know.” Nominated for 2007 Emmy for Best Documentary

CNN presents ‘In the Footsteps of Bin Laden,’ a documentary on the life and mission of Osama bin Laden. Using firsthand accounts of the people who knew him best throughout his life, ‘In the Footsteps of Bin Laden’ details bin Laden’s transformation from a quiet, well-bred boy to the Western world’s most wanted terrorist. The two-hour investigation is reported by CNN’s Christiane Amanpour and is based on the book ‘The Osama bin Laden I Know’ by CNN terrorism analyst Peter Bergen.

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2003

“Al Qaeda 2.0” documentary on Discovery


Bergen was correspondent.

In Al Qaeda 2.0, Peter Bergen, author of the critically acclaimed book Holy War Inc., and the first western journalist to secure a television interview with Osama bin Laden, travels to Pakistan, Yemen, the Philippines and Indonesia to ascertain the true threat of the post 9/11 version of Al Qaeda. He seeks answers to some important questions. What threat does al Qaeda 2.0 pose to the post 9/11 world? How effective is the US military campaign against this new al Qaeda, and how has Osama bin Laden, the world’s most wanted man, evaded the most powerful army in history?

 

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2003

“Blinding Horizon” documentary on National Geographic television.


Bergen was correspondent.

Peter Bergen, author of the New York Times best seller Holy War Inc. and the first western television journalist to interview Osama Bin Laden, investigates the secret world of nuclear smuggling to answer the question: is al Qaeda capable of carrying out a nuclear attack on the United States?

 

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2001

“Holy War, Inc.” documentary for National Geographic television.


Bergen was one of the producers. Based on Bergen’s book “Holy War, Inc.” Nominated for a 2002 Emmy for research

Holy War Inc. is the Emmy-nominated companion documentary to journalist Peter Bergen’s acclaimed book of the same title. In this show Bergen and other terrorism experts examine the cultural and religious issues behind the conflict. With the help of investigators in Germany, Russia and the US, Holy War Inc. explains how cells of well trained operatives function in these disparate worlds, guided by the common thread that unites them: the influence and inspiration of Osama bin Laden.

 

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1997

Osama bin Laden, first TV Interview, on CNN

Bergen was the producer.

This was the first TV interview with Osama Bin Laden. It was conducted in 1997 by CNN’s Peter Arnett, Peter Bergen and photographer Peter Jouvenal. The CNN team was taken to an undisclosed location in Afghanistan for the interview.