Politics & War

FRONTLINE investigated how a clash of politics and personalities in 2012-2013 took the U.S. economy to the edge of the “fiscal cliff.” (Aired 2013) Based on interviews with key Republican and Democratic players including former Speaker of the House John Boehner, former White House adviser Gene Sperling and President Obama’s former Chief of Staff William Daley, “Cliffhanger” investigated how a struggle over America’s debt ceiling and deficit problems led to a bitter, high-stakes standoff. Explore additional reporting on "Cliffhanger" on our website: FRONTLINE is produced at GBH in Boston and is broadcast nationwide on PBS. Funding for FRONTLINE is provided through the support of PBS viewers and by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Additional funding is provided by the Abrams Foundation; the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation; Park Foundation; and the FRONTLINE Journalism Fund with major support from Jon and Jo Ann Hagler on behalf of the Jon L. Hagler Foundation, and additional support from Koo and Patricia Yuen. CHAPTERS: Prologue - 00:00 Republicans Elected in the 2010 Midterms - 0:49 The "Young Guns:" Eric Cantor, Kevin McCarthy

After a year of Allied success - including the Normandy landings on D-Day - Hitler was getting desperate. With France liberated and the allies bearing down on Germany, the Fuhrer launched a final all out counter offensive. This developed into the Battle of the Bulge; Hitlers final attempt to end the war on the western front. War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

By 1943, the battle turned against North Africa. Allied forces led an invasion of Sicily and Italy, and plans were laid to bomb Germany. The liberation of Tunisia and the defense of Stalingrad began to crack the myth of Hitler's super-race, while Allied forces fought back against the Japanese in the Aleutians and on New Guinea and Guadaloanal.

The balance began to shift in the Allies favor in 1943. Axis defeat in Tunisia and the rugged defense of Stalingrad dealt huge blows to Hitler and Nazi Germany. Meanwhile, Allied forces fought back against the Japanese in the Pacific Theatre and the Allied invasion of Sicily (Operation Hsuky) spelled the end for Mussolini's fascist rule. War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

By the time the U.S. entered the war, the Nazi blitzkrieg had flattened France, Holland, Belgium, Denmark, Norway, and Luxembourg, and the Japanese were overwhelming in the Pacific Ocean. At home in 1942, our mighty war machine roared to life.

After 3 months of battle, America surrendered Bataan to the Japanese. What followed was the forcible transfer of 60,000-80,000 American and Filipino prisoners of war. The horrific treatment of the prisoners led to the transfer being dubbed the Bataan Death March. War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

In 1941, before Pearl Harbor was attacked, America was providing war materials to its democracies, and its young men were answering the call to service. Throughout America, "preparedness" was the watchword as the conflict that ignited in 1939 swept through Europe, Africa, and Asia, and a war with Japan loomed closer than ever.

The Unplanned America guys explore both the medicinal and recreational sides of the current legal marijuana revolution sweeping the States, going on a legal weed tour through Denver before spending time with three people using cannabis as their cure. Documentary Central is the home for compelling documentaries tackling subjects like history, climate change, wildlife, conspiracy and more.

7 December 1941, the day Japan attacked Pearl Harbor. The attack brought America into the Second World War and ultimately doomed Japan and the other Axis powers. But why did Japan feel the attack was necessary? War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

Are These the Rarest Vehicles of World War Two?' In their latest challenge video, Luke Tomes and Louee Dessent attempt to track down the greatest monster vehicle of World War Two at Armour & Embarkation 2022, an immersive historic event which brings together dozens of original vehicles from the Second World War. In June 1944, the sleepy country lanes of Dorset were awakened by the deafening noise of men and machinery as the Allies prepared for their invasion of Nazi-occupied Europe. Not only hundreds of thousands of men, but also tens of thousands of vehicles would need to be shipped across the channel to Normandy. In this video, History Hit presenters Luke Tomes and Louee Dessent travel to the south coast of England, where roughly 70 to 80 genuine World War Two vehicles (including jeeps, motorcycles, trucks, halftracks, wreckers, armoured vehicles and even Sherman tanks) would, perhaps for the last time, be heading in convoy from Broadmayne village though the leafy back roads of Dorset, passing by the world famous Bovington Tank Museum for a static display and demonstration runs

French Nazi collaborator Paul Touvier earned the moniker "hangman of Lyon" for the crimes he committed against his fellow countrymen. With the help of the Catholic Church he was able to escape justice for 40 years, but how long will he last with Nazi Hunters on his trail? War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

Married Nazi Hunters Serge and Beate Klarsfeld were relentless in their pursuit of gustapo chief Kurt Lischka. From attempted kidnappings to explosive chocolates, they faced many twists and turns in their efforts to deliver justice. "War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

While on the hunt for SS officer Reinhard Kopps in Argentina, American journalists caught wind of another notorious Nazi in the area; Erich Priebke. As the Gestapo's second in command in Rome, Priebke was responsible for the Ardeatine massacre, one of worst atrocities in Italian history. "War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

By 1944, the Soviets have turned the tide of war in the East and are pursuing the Nazi army back through the Baltic States. This is the story of the German tankers who continue to fight and win the battles even though they cannot win the war.

Married Nazi Hunters Beate and Serge Klarsfeld relentlessly chase Klaus Barbie across continents to make him pay for his crimes. Dubbed the "Butcher of Lyon" the Gestapo chief committed several atrocities during the Second World War. War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

By 1960, one of the world's most notorious Nazi war criminals, Adolf Eichmann, is living incognito with his family on the outskirts of Buenos Aires under the alias Riccardo Klement. Known as the architect of Hitler's 'final solution' and directly culpable for the murder of six million Jews, the former Lieutenant Colonel of the SS is now himself a hunted man. War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

The story of how Israeli secret service agents traveled to South America to assassinate Nazi war criminal Herbert Cukurs. Known as the Hangman of Riga, Cukurs was responsible for the deaths of over 30,000 Latvian Jews. War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

Revealing King George III's Astonishing Military Map Collection At Windsor Castle' Though perhaps better-remembered today for his late-reign madness and the slight issue of losing the Thirteen Colonies, King George III was also one of the world's greatest collectors of military maps. Preserved in excellent condition within Windsor Castle, these highly-detailed maps cover a range of conflicts stretching several centuries. From the decisive naval battle at Lepanto to Bonnie Prince Charlie's last stand at Culloden, join Dan Snow as he is shown through some of the most remarkable records of these conflicts in existence.

From humble beginnings of early prototypes meant to breach trenches during the Great War, to modern-day mobile fortresses with advanced targeting systems, we take a look at the history of tank development in the American military. War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

The Falklands War took the lives of 907 people, including British and Argentine soldiers as well as Falklands civilians. In this landmark documentary broadcast five years after the war ended we see just how the war started and the impact it had on so many lives, both in Britain, Argentina and the Falklands Islands themselves. War Stories is your one-stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

In 1916 the British debuted a new mobile weapon, hoping to break the long bloody stalemate on the Western Front. This is the story of the first tanks and how they changed the face of the modern battlefield forever.

With weapons capable of global destruction, the future of the world is at stake. Journey through history, biology and mythology to find if violence is in our genes or if it’s a construct of our minds. Documentary Central is the home for compelling documentaries tackling subjects like history, climate change, wildlife, conspiracy and more.

How did false claims of election fraud make their way to the center of American politics? FRONTLINE and ProPublica investigate the plot to overturn the 2020 U.S. presidential election. FRONTLINE and ProPublica uncover how a small group of people helped to create some of the core narratives of fraud that President Donald Trump and many others would go on to champion after the election — and how the legacy of their effort is impacting democracy and shaping elections to come. “Plot to Overturn the Election” is a FRONTLINE production with Midnight Films, LLC in partnership with ProPublica. The correspondent is A.C. Thompson. The producer, writer and director is Samuel Black. The executive producer for FRONTLINE is Raney Aronson-Rath. FRONTLINE is produced at GBH in Boston and is broadcast nationwide on PBS. Funding for FRONTLINE is provided through the support of PBS viewers and by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Additional support for FRONTLINE is provided by the Abrams Foundation, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Park Foundation; and the FRONTLINE Journalism Fund with major support from Jon

War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on: For

Since the end of the Vietnam War American forces enjoyed a period of relative peace. That is until Operation Urgent Fury, when a strange set of circumstances brought elite units into armed conflict in Grenada, the strategically important island that guards the southernmost access to the Caribbean. War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

The M1A1 Abrams had advantages in nearly every category over is Iraqi opponent the T-72. It had thicker armour and proved virtually indestructible, with few M1A1's being hit and not fatalities when they were. And this is all before the 120mm gun and the advanced fire control and system. In less than 100 hours a substantial portion of the fourth largest army in the world was defeated and Kuwait was liberated. A war waged in trackless desert, this is the story of how Operation Desert Storm was won, and the weapons and tactics that make it all possible. War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

The Iraqi invasion of Kuwait pitted the largest army in the Persian gulf against one of the smallest. But when the US led coalition became involved with Operation Desert Shield how would the Iraqi army fair...? War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

During the First Gulf War, coalition forces unleashed a massive assaults on Iraqi forces. At the heart of these attacks was a new weapon....the Tomahawk Missile. But why were these new weapons so effective against the enemy? War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

The Gulf War began when Saddam Hussein, President of Iraq launched his troops into Kuwait in August 1990. Spearheaded by 100,000 of his Republican Guard, helicopter gunships, armoured personal carriers, mobile artillery and tanks, the Kuwait army didn't stand a chance. This triggered the most impressive logistic military operation since WWII, with the US and British Armies immediately sending soldiers out to Saudi Arabia, along with an impressive list of weapons... War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

'The Real Story of Isandlwana and Rorke's Drift With Historian Saul David' In this video, Dan Snow talks to Saul David - historian, broadcaster and author - about what was arguably the most brutal and controversial British imperial conflict of the 19th century: the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879. As well as the causes of the war and British colonial expansion in Southern Africa, he explains how the British blundered their way into a catastrophic defeat at the Battle of Isandlwana, the real story of the last stand at Rorke's Drift, and how the Zulu Nation was eventually defeated at the Battle of Ulundi.

Military attacks have alarming consequences on our ecosystem. Radioactive contaminated landscapes, many millions of tons of ammunition in our oceans, toxic landscapes, ten percent of global carbon emissions - the military footprint is huge. From WWI until today, nature is under fire. What does a war mean to our ecosystem and how is the global eco-balance affected? Can a modern war be eco-friendly? What does it mean when a military machinery is put into motion, what resources are needed and how much are used? A search around the globe and through history: The battlefields of World War I are the birthplaces of modern Ecocide. In Norway and Russia a Soviet submarine officer introduces us to one of the best kept cold war secrets: the nuclear complex. In Vietnam scientists laborate on the half a century old dioxin contamination caused by Agent Orange. On the Canadian coastline a Remotely Operated Vehicle leads us to toxic hotspots on the seafloor. In the Baltic Sea we find a German shipwreck loaded with chemical weapons. And a paradise island in the Caribbean gives shocking

The Khmer Rouge and the Cambodian civil wars impact on modern day Cambodia is staggering. With active landmines still hidden beneath the landscape, they have changed the lives of so many people, not least children. A result of the the Vietnam War and the rise of the Khmer Rouge, these landmines affect an average of 2.5 people each day, and it is said it will take over 100 years to remove these devastating devices from the country. War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

During WWII Britain needed to arm itself by any means necessary, with weapons manufacturers and even Winston Churchill being forced to experiment with some crazy ideas. But with the success of inventions like the candy inspired limpet mine, Churchill gave his war time inventors free reign, going on to inspire characters like Q in James Bond. War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

Before WWII Heinrich Himmler and the Nazi high command went on the hunt for the origins of the Aryan race, to which they saw themselves as direct descendants. Believing that somehow they were descended from the lost city of Atlantis, and the people who had fled from its destruction they find their way to Tibet where they believed there were still traces of Aryan heritage... War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

HMS Alliance is a Royal Navy A-class, Amphion-class or Acheron-class submarine, laid down towards the end of the Second World War and completed in 1947. Over her 28-year career, she held the world record for longest dive by a submarine, staying immersed for 30 days, in 1947, served during the Cold War, and was retired in 1973. The submarine is the only surviving example of the class, having been a memorial and museum ship since 1981. In this video, submarine veteran Commodore Eric Thompson gives Dan Snow a tour of beautiful submarine, which is now preserved at the Royal Navy Submarine Museum in Gosport.

Epic Battle Of Marathon Total War Recreation In late summer 490BC the citizens of Athens faced off against the superpower of the ancient world, the Persian Empire of Darius I. The fate of western democracy and civilisation was balanced on a knife edge as the two foes clashed at the Battle of Marathon. We've recreated the battle using the Radious mod for the brilliant video game Rome II - Total War. History Hit presenters Louee Dessent and Luke Tomes take you through the strategy and tactics of the two generals on the day, the Athenian strategos Miltiades and the Persian commanders, Datis and Artaphernes. They’ll take you through the background to the battle, the composition of the armies and the key moments that decided the day. The Battle of Marathon has gained legendary status and was certainly a decisive clash of the Greco-Persian Wars, but is it possible to separate history from myth? We examine the key literary source Herodotus and try to give you a balanced view of how this battle played out.

Winston Churchill, wartime Prime Minister of Great Britain and its empire during the Second World War, is one of the most recognisable figures of world history. The man dominated Whitehall and Westminster, but many of his most vital decisions during the war years were taken away from the public eye. Not in Parliament, nor in Downing Street. But underground - in the Cabinet War Rooms. To this day, they are beautifully preserved, famously portrayed in the award winning film 'Darkest Hour.' Dan Snow pays a visit to the Churchill War Rooms, walking in the footsteps of the great man and his many associates during the Second World War.

On October 25th, 606 years to the day since it took place, we’ve recreated the Battle of Agincourt using the Total War video game series. For this battle we’ve used the Medieval Kingdoms 1212AD mod for the game Total War: Attila. History Hit presenters Louee Dessent and Luke Tomes take you through the strategy and tactics of the two generals on the day in 1415, King Henry V of England and the Constable of France, Charles D’Albret. They’ll take you through the background to the battle, the composition of the armies and the key moments that decided the day. Did the English archers with their deadly longbows prove decisive? And how were some of the finest medieval knights of their day bested in hand-to-hand combat? Watch to find out. This is the second episode of our brand new Battlefield Replays series where we’ll use gaming footage to recreate some of the best known battles in history.

In early 1939, before WWII had begun, America was a young and successful nation that did not want to go to war. Fast forward five years and America would emerge not only with one of the world's strongest armies, but as a leading power on the world stage. Directed by Frank Capra this episode of Why We Fight was one in a series of propaganda films aimed at US soldiers, teaching them about the reasons they were fighting and why they could not afford to lose this war. War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

Nazi Germany's desire for world conquest in WWII goes back to 1863 and Otto Von Bismarck. In this public information film called Why We Fight, made and screened during the war, we see just how the Nazis capitalised on this desire and began to take over Europe early on in the war. War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

On Nov. 12, 2021, former Trump adviser Steve Bannon was indicted on two counts of contempt of Congress, after failing to comply with a subpoena issued by the U.S. House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol. Revisit FRONTLINE’s examination of Bannon’s worldview and his role in Donald Trump's campaign and administration. (Aired 2017) A bombastic figure on the far right who rose to prominence as a policy adviser and speech writer, Steven Bannon entered the White House determined to implement Trump’s campaign promises. “Bannon’s War” details how the former Breitbart News editor also engineered the sweeping executive order that restricted Muslims from entering the United States, and held such sway over the former president that Time magazine dubbed him “Manipulator in Chief.” He left the White House in August 2017 amid fallout from Trump’s remarks about the violence that erupted during protests in Charlottesville, Va. but continued to promote the president and his agenda. Funding for FRONTLINE is provided through the support of PBS viewers and by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Major funding for FRONTLINE

German fighter aircraft in WWII were notorious for their ability to hamper Allied bombing missons. So how to stop them? Destroy them at the source. In this episode of Battlezone we see how Allied air operations planned and executed precise bombing missions on the German factories that produced their feared aircraft. War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

In this 2009 documentary, FRONTLINE producers Martin Smith and Marcela Gaviria travel across Afghanistan and Pakistan to see firsthand how President Obama’s strategy took shape, delivering vivid, on-the-ground reporting from the war's many fronts. In “Obama’s War”, Correspondent Martin Smith interviews top generals, diplomats and government officials to understand the internal debates over President Obama's grand attempt to combat terrorism at its roots. With the brunt of the work falling on rank-and-file soldiers in the unforgiving landscape of Helmand province, the Taliban stronghold in southern Afghanistan, FRONTLINE embedded with Echo Company of the 2nd Marines, 8th Battalion. Since the Marines' arrival that July, Helmand had become the most lethal battlefield in Afghanistan. But FRONTLINE found the Marines trying to act as armed diplomats, attempting to build the necessary trust for badly needed economic development. Major funding for FRONTLINE is provided by the Ford Foundation. Additional funding is provided by the Abrams Foundation; the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation; Park Foundation; and the FRONTLINE Journalism Fund with major support from Jon and Jo Ann Hagler on behalf of the

Adolf Hitler was one of the worlds most evil men, leading Nazi Germany in WWII and bringing about death and destruction, the likes of which the world had never seen. In this telling post-war documentary with contributors such as Hitler's own sister we are able to see behind the dark curtain of his life and see how he rose and fell so dramatically. War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

Dwight D. Eisenhower helps narrate this account of the end of WWII and its aftermath. With the world left to look at itself more clearly than it had ever done before and see how much it had changed in the last six years, it had to ask itself, how would it pick itself up, and how would it make sure that it didn't happen again? Would the world finally come together in aid of peace, or would new battle lines be drawn in the aftermath of victory? War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

In 1940, Britain waited for the Nazi invasion to come. But RAF Fighter Command stood firm and prepared to fight back in the Battle of Britain. But it was one man's foresight and commitment that allowed Britain to stand strong. This man was Hugh Dowding and this is his story. War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

After Pearl Harbor in WWII, America set out on the long mission to regain control of the Pacific. In this episode we see the long and arduous campaign drawing to a close, with American forces taking the Japanese-held islands of Guam, Tinian and Saipan in the Marianas chain. Also in this episode: In 'Steel Town' and 'A Community At War' we see the differing experiences of two Ohio cities, Youngstown and Dayton, and how their industrial power helped drive America to victory in WWII. War Stories is your one stop shop for all things military history. From Waterloo to Verdun, we'll be bringing you only the best documentaries and stories from history's most engaging and dramatic conflicts. You can find more from us on

Decades after the Holocaust, FRONTLINE investigates the resurgence of far-right extremism and violence in Germany — and what authorities are doing to confront the growing problem. From producer, director and correspondent Evan Williams, who has been covering the far right in Europe for almost a decade, “Germany’s Neo-Nazis & the Far Right” looks at how, over the past five years, Germany has faced a wave of violence against Jews, Muslims, immigrants and left-wing politicians. Williams probes the rise of neo-Nazi ideology and far-right extremism in modern-day Germany — including within the country’s military and police — and why authorities are struggling to address the growing movement. Gripping and alarming, “Germany’s Neo-Nazis & the Far-Right” is a powerful look at Germany’s efforts to come to terms with its past — and its present. The documentary is supported by “Exploring Hate,” a multiplatform public media initiative from The WNET Group in New York aimed at offering an in-depth understanding of the rising tide of hatred, hate crimes, antisemitism and racism. For more reporting in connection with this investigation, visit FRONTLINE’s website: Funding