Skip to playerSkip to main contentSkip to footer
  • yesterday
From Luminant Media and director Brian Knappenberger, Turning Point: The Vietnam War offers an unfiltered look at one of the most defining and divisive conflicts in modern history and the profound, lasting impact it has had on America’s global identity and on the lives of countless people. Following in the footsteps of Turning Point: The Bomb and the Cold War and Turning Point: 9/11 and the War On Terror, this five episode docuseries showcases a war that was more than just a military failure; it was a political and cultural reckoning that reshaped America, exposed deep divisions at home and shattered trust in the government. With unprecedented access to CBS News archives, rare Vietnamese footage, declassified government records and previously unearthed White House recordings, the series spans nearly two decades and three different presidential administrations, amplifying often overlooked perspectives. As both America and Vietnam mark the 50th anniversary of the Fall of Saigon, Turning Point: The Vietnam War offers a timely exploration of how the war’s unresolved wounds, unlearned lessons, and enduring consequences continue to shape the world today.

Category

📺
TV
Transcript
00:00I cannot think of a more cataclysmic event than the Vietnam War.
00:09The Vietnam War is a turning point in United States history.
00:15Vietnam is a hellhole, killing field, hamburger hill,
00:20Kherson, My Lai Mexico, POWs, Viet Cong.
00:28Everything happened in Vietnam.
00:32The story of the United States in Vietnam was a story of ignorance, hubris, arrogance.
00:38It tended to be evil, but I don't think it was intended to be evil.
00:45We learned how big the gap was between what presidents were saying and what they believed.
00:51We've got fighting about the train three years ago.
00:59I think they were sincere in what they were doing.
01:02The problem is they didn't know what they were doing.
01:05Our method of operation was called search and destroy.
01:09You just hunt for people and you kill them.
01:11You pull the trigger, you can't take the bullet back.
01:14And it changes you.
01:18It was kill or be killed.
01:20They had to live the nightmares.
01:23I wasn't the same person anymore.
01:25Those are the memories that stay with me.
01:29For Vietnamese people, the events that took place were life-defining.
01:34The anger was severe, strong, boiling, boiling.
01:47This is a television war.
01:50Seeing the graphic images marked a turning point in the American conscience.
01:56One of the major roles of the press is hold power accountable.
02:00You realize that our heroes are just liars.
02:04Many of the things that plague our society today have their roots in the Vietnam era.
02:10Our image of ourselves as the last best hope on earth was shaken.
02:16We were playing God.
02:18We've lost our moral compass.
02:20And we haven't recovered.
02:21We can't forget Vietnam.
02:24It's with us today.
02:26Yeah.

Recommended