Nine Inch Nails ' 2006 tour merchandise designs featured overt references to the United States military , which Reznor said " reflect ed future directions " . Reznor later described '' Year Zero '' as " the soundtrack to a movie that does n't exist " . The album criticizes the American government 's policies , and " could be about the end of the world " . Reznor specifically cited what he labeled as the " erosion of freedoms " and " the way that we treat the rest of the world and our own citizens " . Reznor had previously called the results of the 2004 US election " one step closer to the end of the world . " Even though the fictional story begins in January 2007 , the timeline of the album and alternate reality game mentions historical events , such as the September 11 attacks and the Iraq War . From there , fictional events lead to worldwide chaos , including bioterrorism attacks , the United States engaging in nuclear war with Iran , and the elimination of American civil liberties at the hands of the fictional government agency The Bureau of Morality . Regardless of being fictional , a columnist of the '' Hartford Courant '' commented , " What 's scary is that this does n't seem as far-fetched as it should , given recent revelations about the FBI 's abuse of the Patriot Act and the dissent-equals-disloyalty double-speak coming out of Washington in recent years . " All of the artwork for '' Year Zero '' was created by Rob Sheridan , art director for Nine Inch Nails , who is also credited for artwork on '' With Teeth '' , among other Nine Inch Nails releases since 2000 . The album features a thermo-chrome heat-sensitive CD face which appears black when first opened , but reveals a black binary code on a white background when heat is generated from the album being played . The binary sequence translates to "exterminal.net " , the address of a website involved in the alternate reality game . Reznor displayed displeasure at the extra $ 10 added to the CD 's price in Australia for the thermo-coating , saying it only cost an extra 83 ¢ per CD and that the extra cost came from his pocket
September 11 attacks
September 11 attacks
Year Zero (album)