[ad_1]
“There was a great sensitivity in this country that people felt they were being lied to,” said Mr. Bermas.
New technology has also helped. Unlike pre-internet conspiracy theories that had to be conveyed through books and brochures, “Loose Change” was available online for free. Fans have uploaded it to sites like Google Video, the now-defunct YouTube competitor. Viewed millions of times and translated into many languages.
The “Loose Change” team has also caught on to other creative distribution strategies by selling DVDs in multipacks and encouraging fans to leave copies behind in laundries, post offices, hotel lobbies, and other public places where strangers can pick up. When fans wanted to release the movie on their own, they allowed it, even if it meant uploading it to a torrent file-sharing service or distributing pirated discs.
“We didn’t care,” said Mr. Bermas. “We wanted the message to come out, period.”
“Loose Change” never made its creators rich, but the film has become a cultural touchstone and attracted a large number of high-profile fans. Rosie O’Donnell, then host of “The View,” raised doubts about the official narrative on 9/11, and Joy Reid, now an MSNBC presenter, praised the film on her personal blog. (Ms. O’Donnell did not respond to a request for comment and Ms. Reid told Charlie Sheen expressed interest in narrating a version of the film. Mr Rowe said the film will be financed by “Shark Tank” billionaire Mark Cuban, although the deal never materialized. (In an email, Mr. Cuban said he thought the film was “nonsense” and that the talks never went beyond the initial discussions.)
Jonathan Kay, a Canadian journalist who writes A book about the 9/11 truthistsHe told me that the success of “Loose Change” has transformed conspiracy theories from a passive hobby into a social activity, encouraging a new generation of conspirators to try their hand at media production.
“It was part of an era where everyone with a fringe theory would suddenly look up and say, ‘One minute – I can make a mark on the world with a few thousand dollars or less’. .
[ad_2]
Source link