National Geographic Channel Hosts Press Conference With Guantanamo Bay Experts in Advance of Its World Premiere Film, Explorer: Inside Guantanamo, an In-Depth Portrait of the Infamous Detention Center

National Geographic Channel Hosts Press Conference With Guantanamo Bay Experts in Advance of Its World Premiere Film, Explorer: Inside Guantanamo, an In-Depth Portrait of the Infamous Detention Center

MEDIA ADVISORY: SAVE THE DATE - THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009

As Guantanamo Faces Closure, Panel of Experts Including a Former Detainee Offers Diverse Perspectives on "Gitmo's" Legacy and the Fate of its Estimated 250 Remaining Detainees

"So much of what defines us as a nation in the last decade is crystallized at Guantanamo. And whatever you think about Guantanamo...it will soon be gone." ? Director Jon Else

WHAT: Press conference and Q&A session to discuss life behind the razor wire of the notorious detention center and introduce National Geographic Channel's world premiere special, Explorer: Inside Guantanamo.

WHO: Moazzam Begg, Former Guantanamo Detainee (TBD - via phone from London)

Lt. Cmdr. Charlie Swift, Military Defense Counsel to Detainee Salim Hamdan

Charles "Cully" Stimson, Former Senior Pentagon Official for Detainee Affairs, and Current Senior Legal Fellow at Heritage Foundation

Laurel Fletcher, Professor of Law at UC Berkeley, and Author of Recent Detainee Study

   Frank Gaffney, Co-Founder and President of Center for Security Policy    Jon Else, Film Director and Producer    WHEN: Thursday, January 8, 2009  

5:00 pm PT - NGC's full one-hour session includes 30-minute Guantanamo discussion

   WHERE: TCA Press Tour   Universal Hilton   555 Universal Hollywood Drive   Universal City, CA  91608   ***Room: SIERRA BALLROOM "A"***    PRESS RSVP: Christie Parell   703-577-8802 (cell); cparell@fratelli.com   

NOTE: Panelists will be available for interviews after the press conference. Please submit interview requests prior to noon on Thursday, January 8th. A mult box will be available for audio hook-up.

About the Documentary:

In a special 2-hour episode premiering in April 2009, National Geographic Channel's Emmy(R)-award winning series Explorer offers a definitive, in-depth portrait of the Guantanamo Bay Detention Facility, one of most restrictive prisons in the world. Created following 9/11, allegations of torture, illegal incarceration and human rights abuses have made it a tarnished symbol of America's no-holds-bar war on terror and a lightning rod for critics and controversy. With extensive access unlike any other granted by the U.S. military, Explorer: Inside Guantanamo Bay follows daily life for nearly three weeks inside this military detention center on the island of Cuba, documenting the pressurized interaction among soldiers and staff with detainees, who wield hunger strikes, intimidation, and religious expression in a grueling duel of will and determination. Currently in production, the film is expected to include candid interviews with top officials who fear Al-Qaeda is still operating out of the facility, interrogators (past and present), former detainees as well as attorneys representing those still being held.

   MEDIA CONTACTS:   For more information on the show or to set up interviews, please contact:   Christie Parell, 703-577-8802, CParell@fratelli.com   Chris Albert, 310-880-1250, CAlbert@natgeochannel.com   Erin Griffin, 202-316-9707, erin.griffin@natgeochannel.com    /PRNewswire-USNewswire - Jan. 7/  

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Source: National Geographic Channel

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Profile: International Entertainment