Original title
CNN Presents
Released
-
Origin country
US
Genre
Documentary
Status
Ended
Number of seasons
7
Number of episodes
75
CNN Presents is an American documentary program on CNN weekends. The program used to be replaced with CNN Special Investigations Unit, which features the same documentary format, but differs from it in a number of ways and is shorter in length. The program was originally a regular weekly series that looks in-depth in the important news stories of the times. More recently, it became a "special event" documentary that airs every time a larger, more long-term special report went into making. Notably, the program has been a winner of a number of different awards, including the International Documentary Association Best Documentary Series award. Previous to his departure from CNN, Presents was hosted and narrated by Aaron Brown. While CNN Presents was broadcast on the network, a specialized CNN Presents logo was shown in the corner without the news ticker on the screen. CNN Presents has been revived since its presentation of God's Warriors by Christiane Amanpour in August 2007, and later with Planet in Peril, Black in America, and Latino in America, all of which have received follow-up documentaries later on. In July 2011, the format of CNN Presents changed to a series of three investigative reports aired together in a one hour documentary, instead of a documentary about a single topic.
The administration of President George W. Bush in substance and style.
The HIV/AIDS epidemic has struck Africa with horrific force -- more 3.8 million people infected in 2000. Many of these people will die within a decade. CNN's Charlayne Hunter-Gault takes a look at the lives of six South Africans who illuminate the face of the HIV/AIDS pandemic sweeping the continent.
CNN Space Correspondent Miles O'Brien takes a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to make the space shuttle fly.
In 1999, CNN took a look at some of the people of California's Silicon Valley participating in and benefiting from the roaring economic boom fueled by technology. Now, as companies lay off workers and entrepreneurs fold their businesses, CNN returns to see how some have fared.
Thousands of people seek asylum in America each year, fleeing racial, religious, political or other types of persecution in countries around the world. For the first time, cameras were allowed to record the closed and confidential asylum proceedings inside the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service.
African journalist Sorious Samura fled the violence in his country in search of a better life and later returned to document the violence there in the award-winning documentary "Cry Freetown." Samura has now turned his focus on the arduous trek that Africans are making and why they risk their lives for an uncertain future.
The annual Sydney to Hobart yacht race is a great Australian tradition -- a days-long event across dangerous, often stormy seas -- that is nicknamed "Hell on High Water." But in 1998, no one anticipated the disaster that led to the deaths of six of the competing sailors.
CNN's Mike Boettcher takes a close look at the top-secret the United States played in the manhunt for the Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar.
Three decades of conflict in Northern Ireland have left more than 3,000 people dead, pitted Catholic against Protestant and turned neighbor against neighbor. CNN's Nic Robertson examines the battle for peace with a look at the most controversial politician in the U.K.: IRA commander-turned-peacemaker Martin McGuinness.
Admire them or envy them, there's something deeply fascinating about the small group of people who are simply the best at what they do. CNN and TIME have joined forces to examine America's best, focusing first on 21 artists and entertainers.
With U.S. air travel rife with delays and congestion, CNN's Leon Harris takes a look at how the air traffic system works and ways it can be improved.
The U.S. Army believes the wars of the future are likely to be fought in cities. CNN Presents takes a look at soldiers in the 101st Airborne as they train for an urban battlefield.
In the second installment of America's Best, CNN and TIME looked at the brilliant individuals, combining passion and obsession, who are still pushing the boundaries of of science and medicine, often by questioning or ignoring the conventional wisdom. CNN Presents profiled pediatric neurosurgeon Ben Carson, AIDS researcher Anthony Fauci, neurobiologist Patricia Goldman-Rakic, paleontologist Andrew Knoll and climatologist Lonnie Thompson.
Most people who drink alcohol imbibe without a problem. But at least 8 million American adults meet the clinical definition of alcoholism and millions more abuse alcohol or occasionally engage in risky drinking, inflicting damage upon society and themselves.
Since the Taliban took control of most of Afghanistan in 1996, the group has imposed its harsh version of Islamic law on the country. In "Beneath the Veil," journalist Saira Shah traveled to Afghanistan to see the effects of the Taliban's rule on her father's homeland.
A CNN-Time collaboration identifying the people who are simply the best in America.
With international attention focused on Osama bin Laden, an Islamic extremist who thinks he can rid the Muslim world of U.S. presence, most of the world, especially the West, is now asking how a religion can be used to justify acts of a terrorist?
How could the 19 suspected hijackers -- and whoever may have helped them -- hide in plain sight in the weeks and months before September 11, fooling everyone to such deadly effect? Investigators from the United States and throughout the world are now faced with that question and many more as they try to trace the trail of terrorism.
In the early 1990s, the United States became part of a multi-national military force that aimed to get humanitarian aid to Somalia. The ambitious humanitarian mission ended in bullets, missiles and death.
How safe are U.S. skies?
A picture is worth a thousand words. Is it worth a single life?
Afganistan's battle against Soviet occupation.
Months before September 11, Saira Shah traveled to Afghanistan to record the impact of the Taliban's harsh rule for her documentary "Beneath the Veil." She recently returned to Afghanistan to see how the U.S. airstrikes are affecting the average Afghan.
About one out of every nine babies in the United States is born prematurely. Cutting-edge technology is giving doctors the chance to save babies as tiny as 1 pound, but it comes with a price because as many as 80 to 90 percent suffer lasting disabilities.
In the award-winning "Cry Freetown," African journalist Sorious Samura documented the horrific suffering that a brutal civil war inflicted upon his homeland of Sierra Leone. He now revisits his country after a peace agreement called for RUF child soldiers to return to their homes and families.
Every American is now vividly aware of the threat of terrorism. As the U.S. government struggles to close the security gaps at airports, concerns are rising about a range of other potential dangers. How prepared are local, state and federal agencies to deal with the possibility of a large-scale biological or nuclear attack?
The war on terrorism is most visible in the military campaign in Afghanistan, but terrorists may already be inside the United States. Some U.S. government agencies are focusing on technology to perform surveillance on suspected terrorists and their use of the Internet. But there are concerns over how the government's aggressive tactics are infringing upon the civil liberties enshrined into law.
In November 2001, the aircraft carrier John C. Stennis deployed on a half-year journey, leaving its San Diego home base two months earlier than planned. The men and women on board spent the December holidays at war, relieving another carrier in the northern Arabian Sea as the Stennis joined Operation Enduring Freedom in mid-December.
In the 1990s, Yugoslavia fought four wars and lost all of them. Its deposed president, Slobodan Milosevic, is now a prisoner awaiting trial in the Netherlands on charges of genocide and crimes against humanity. The International War Crimes Tribunal has accused Milosevic of personally authorizing mass murder in Bosnia, Croatia and Kosovo while he was president.
CNN's Frank Buckley examines the sinking of the commercial fishing vessel the Arctic Rose and the various theories of what caused the worst commercial fishing disaster in modern history. He also looks at the extraordinary investigation the U.S. Coast Guard mounted into the incident and the federal regulations the fishing industry faces.
High school students across America found last week if they were accepted into the college of their choice. But the road to getting into college is a stressful one, especially for those seeking admission into elite schools. CNN looks at three high school seniors at Santa Monica High School in California, who are struggling with homework, college preparatory classes, extracurricular activities and building the perfect college application resume.
Six out of 10 Americans are overweight or obese, and obesity among American adults has nearly doubled since 1980. CNN Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen examines the issue and finds that losing weight isn't the problem for many people. The problem lies in not regaining the lost weight. Cohen talks to two people who were successful in losing weight and keeping it off, and reports on research that suggests genetics may play a role in predisposing people to be overweight.
Napoleon Beazley was executed by lethal injection May 29, 2002, for a murder he committed in 1994. He was on death row in Texas, which has executed 269 people since 1982, more than any other U.S. state in those 20 years. CNN's Christiane Amanpour examines the death penalty process in Texas by following the Beazley case through the criminal justice system.
CNN's John Zarrella talks to hurricane experts at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration who fears periodic shifts in the climate could lead to a major hurricane in the United States.
It has been six years since the Centennial Olympic Park bombing at the Summer Olympics and Eric Robert Rudolph, who also committed three other bombing, remains a fugitive on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list. CNN's Art Harris takes a look at Rudolph's life before he became a fugitive and checks out the scaled-back search for him in the mountains of western North Carolina.
In the breakaway Russian republic of Chechnya, Russia says it is fighting against terrorism. Chechen rebels say they are fighting for independence. The outcome seems to be ongoing misery for the war-ravaged region -- a cycle of violence where brutality seems to have no limit, and surrender is not an option.
The Ford Crown Victoria is the nation's most popular police car. Yet in the last six years, gas tank fires due to rear-end collisions have killed more than a dozen police officers. Susan Candiotti examines whether U.S. police officers face an extra risk every time they get inside their patrol car.
In Afghanistan, the U.S. military employed some of its oldest aircraft. The 50-year-old B-52 bomber proved its mettle, as did the F-14 Tomcat fighter jet, which entered service in 1973, and the F/A-18 Hornet. But while the venerable B-52 will remain in service, the military is beginning to phase out the Tomcat in favor of its next-generation fighter, the F/A-18 Super Hornet.
In November 2001, Northern Alliance forces captured the key city of Mazar-e Sharif. The war in northern Afghanistan appeared to be ending, but instead an uprising exploded. In a matter of days, hundreds died in one of the epic battles of the war.
The U.S Army's Special Forces train extensively for combat. But they also train for the possibility of being captured by the enemy. For nearly three weeks, a CNN camera team was granted exclusive access to the surival training of 50 new Green Berets at Camp Mackall, which is part of Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
The people, the events, the stories of September 11.
On September 11, 2001, hijacked planes struck the World Trade Center and left a 16-acre hole in the heart of Lower Manhattan. Almost instantly, a debate ensued over how the land should be used. Some envision a memorial, others foresee more skyscrapers and business opportunities. CNN goes into the streets of New York City to look at the fight over the future of Ground Zero.
The terror, the tragedy, the lingering questions.
The U.S. military once again preparing for a possible war in Iraq -- a war driven by a new policy in Washington.
The hunt for the sniper suspects.
The pivotal 2002 mid-term elections.
The dealers pitch it as the new drug -- a potent combination of embalming fluid, tobacco, marijuana and mint leaves. But its most dangerous ingredient is PCP, a chemical developed as an anesthetic but banned in the 1960s because its terrible side effects. Use is soaring nationwide and PCP-related emergency room admissions are up 80 percent in two years.
While American troops train for another battle, the United States is engaged in another diplomatic showdown with Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. CNN Presents examines several key questions in the ongoing story on Iraq.
Iraq declared that the United States has no reason to launch an attack and unveiled 11,000 pages of documents that they say will prove they have no weapons of mass destruction. But the U.S. Army General Tommy Franks is preparing computer games, a war exercise that sets the stage for the possibility of war.
U.N. experts are about to begin examining the massive Iraqi documents. If the experts conclude that Iraq is indeed lying, it could give President Bush support to lead a military assault.
More than a year after the U.S. assault on Afghanistan, Osama bin Laden remains at large and the al Qaeda terrorist network reemerges with a new structure and new tactics.
No one knows how many thousands of Iraqis were killed in the war that toppled Saddam Hussein's regime. But if history is any guide, some of the troops who saw combat will come home to face a longer battle -- with their memories. The sights, the sounds and the smells of killing may follow soldiers for years. CNN correspondent Candy Crowley examines the effects of war through the eyes of three combat veterans in "Fit To Kill." An examination of how soldiers cope with killing in combat; and the impact it has on them once they return home. The documentary features insights from military historian David Steighan; retired Lt. Col. David Grossman, author of “On Killing”; neuro-biologist Dr. James McGaugh; and Col. Jim Stokes, an Army psychiatrist.
What if a hurricane wiped out Houston, Texas, and terrorists attacked oil production in Saudi Arabia? "CNN Presents" looks at a hypothetical scenario about the vulnerability of the world's oil supply, the world's remaining sources of oil and explores the potential of alternative fuels.
CNN Presents: Undercover in the Secret State follows Korean-American journalist Jung Eun Kim as she tracks down a new breed of dissident in North Korea. These dissidents are using small digital cameras and cell phones to show the world the brutal life inside North Korea.
A three-part CNN Presents documentary produced by Christiane Amanpour in which she examines the rise of religious fundamentalism as a political force in the world. The documentary was filmed in the United States, Europe and Middle East. It focuses on the three major monotheistic religions of the world, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The three chapters are titled God’s Jewish Warriors, God’s Muslim Warriors, and God’s Christian Warriors. The first describes the Jewish settlement movement in Israel and the fund-raising in the United States that supports it, while the second presents issues of radical Islam and Sharia law. The final segment focused on the United States and the political influence of Christian religious leaders.
A three-part CNN Presents documentary produced by Christiane Amanpour in which she examines the rise of religious fundamentalism as a political force in the world. The documentary was filmed in the United States, Europe and Middle East. It focuses on the three major monotheistic religions of the world, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The three chapters are titled God’s Jewish Warriors, God’s Muslim Warriors, and God’s Christian Warriors. The first describes the Jewish settlement movement in Israel and the fund-raising in the United States that supports it, while the second presents issues of radical Islam and Sharia law. The final segment focused on the United States and the political influence of Christian religious leaders.
A three-part CNN Presents documentary produced by Christiane Amanpour in which she examines the rise of religious fundamentalism as a political force in the world. The documentary was filmed in the United States, Europe and Middle East. It focuses on the three major monotheistic religions of the world, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The three chapters are titled God’s Jewish Warriors, God’s Muslim Warriors, and God’s Christian Warriors. The first describes the Jewish settlement movement in Israel and the fund-raising in the United States that supports it, while the second presents issues of radical Islam and Sharia law. The final segment focused on the United States and the political influence of Christian religious leaders.
The story of Susan Stanton, formerly known as Steve Stanton, the one-time city manager of Largo, Fla., who was fired in 2007 after it was learned that she had decided to undergo a male-to-female gender change. The documentary chronicles her transformation.
Drew Griffin reports on an audit of North Carolina's State Bureau of Investigation's crime lab that uncovered irregularities in more than 200 cases, including three that resulted in the defendants being found guilty and executed.
Recalling the Branch Davidians, the cult led by David Koresh that came to a fiery end in April 1993 following a 51-day standoff with the ATF and FBI at their compound near Waco, Texas. Included: a timeline of events leading up to the tragedy; recordings of conversations between FBI negotiators and Koresh. Drew Griffin reports.
A profile of Prince William's fiancée Kate Middleton, featuring remarks from university friend Jules Knight and royal photographer Arthur Edwards. Also: how the pair have honored the life and legacy of Diana, Princess of Wales. Soledad O'Brien reports.
Drew Griffin examines the 2009 conviction of American exchange student Amanda Knox in Italy for the murder of her flatmate, focusing on the evidence used against her and prosecutorial behavior that may call into question her conviction. Included: an interview with the chief prosecutor, Giuliano Mignini.
Chris Lawrence reports on the long hunt for Osama bin Laden that ended May 1, 2011, with his death during a Navy SEAL raid on his Pakistan hideout. Included: insights from terrorism analyst Peter Bergen, former CIA director Michael Hayden, former CIA officer Gary Berntsen and CNN correspondents Barbara Starr, Ed Henry and Nic Robertson, as well as political analyst Gloria Borger.
Mel Gibson is profiled.
Detailing the tornado damage in the central U.S. Reporters: Drew Griffin; David Mattingly.
Detailing the tornado damage in the central U.S. Reporters: Drew Griffin; David Mattingly.
Kaj Larsen reports on WikiLeaks and its founder, Julian Assange, detailing the controversy that surrounds the Web site and the evolution of Assange from hacker to provocateur. Included: remarks from Assange via interviews he gave journalist Mark Davis, former WikiLeaks spokesman Daniel Domscheit-Berg, Brig. Gen. Mark Kimmitt (USA Ret.) and Guardian journalist Nick Davies, who shares the concerns he had with Assange's decision to release sensitive military reports without redacting names.
Amber Lyons reports on the roles played by online activists in fomenting change in North African and Middle Eastern countries, including Tunisia and Egypt. Also: the revolutionary movements in Libya, Syria and Yemen.
The U.S. space shuttle program is examined. Included: NASA administrator Charles Bolden on NASA's future; a family that witnessed the first shuttle launch in 1981; inside Discovery, the shuttle that has flown the most flights; the site in Utah where the shuttle boosters were built. Reporter: John Zarrella.
Brooke Baldwin reports on an effort to solve a series of slayings of young Midwestern women by sending a convicted drug dealer into a prison to befriend the man suspected of killing them.
Larry King interviews the cast of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2," including Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Tom Felton, Helena Bonham Carter and Robbie Coltrane. Also: James and Oliver Phelps (aka the Weasley twins) lead a tour of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at the Universal Orlando Resort in Florida.
The hunt for and arrest of alleged Boston mob boss James "Whitey" Bulger; the U.S. presence in the Arctic; the sport of cheerleading.
Possible civil-rights abuses in Minneapolis' Anoka-Hennepin school district, where bullied students have committed suicide; the mystery behind the bodies of four prostitutes found along a Long Island beach; a Costa Rica refuge for poached monkeys.
Among the heroes of September 11th were female rescue workers who raced to the Twin Towers in the wake of the attack. Anchor and special correspondent Soledad O’Brien tells the stories of female law enforcement officers, fire fighters, EMS workers and others who spent their lives defying macho stereotypes as they fought for access to jobs that require them to risk their lives for others. Among the heroines is an African-American probationary firefighter whose company lost 7 of the 343 that died that day, and a young mother and decorated police officer last seen directing others to safety just before the WTC collapsed. O’Brien profiles these unsung heroes and, of the survivors, reports their present-day health struggles, their continuing mourning, and their determination to be prepared for the next attack.
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