'' Shadows of Liberty '' is a 2012 British documentary film directed by Canadian filmmaker Jean-Philippe Tremblay . The documentary examines the impact of corporate media and concentration of media ownership on journalism and the news . It is based on the book '' The Media Monopoly '' by Ben Bagdikian . The film ’s title is borrowed from a Thomas Paine quote : " When men yield up the privilege of thinking , the last shadow of liberty quits the horizon . " The film portrays the U.S. media , including the major TV networks , as controlled by fewer and larger conglomerates that exercise extraordinary political social and economic power . It is structured around 14 vignettes that allege censorship at the U.S. networks , including the 1996 TWA 800 air disaster controversy and Nike sweatshops in Asia . It also alleges how the investigation of these stories have cost the jobs , and in some cases the lives , of investigating journalists ( as suggested by the case of Gary Webb who committed suicide in 2004 . It features interviews with journalists , activists and academics including Amy Goodman , Danny Glover , Julian Assange , Dan Rather , David Simon , Norman Solomon , Robert Baer , Roberta Baskin , Robert W. McChesney , Daniel Ellsberg , Chris Hedges and Kristina Borjesson
1996 TWA 800 air disaster
TWA Flight 800
Shadows of Liberty