Spike Lee to Re-Edit Episode of HBO Docuseries Featuring 9/11 Conspiracy Theorists

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Spike Lee is re-editing the final episode of his HBO docuseries, which originally included interviews with 9/11 conspiracy theorists.

“Im Back In The Editing Room And Looking At The Eighth And Final Chapter Of NYC EPICENTERS 9/11➔2021½,” Lee said in a Wednesday statement. “I Respectfully Ask You To Hold Your Judgment Until You See The FINAL CUT.”

The series, titled NYC Epicenters 9/11➔2021½, focuses on the “weaving together the stories, memories, and insights of those who were eyewitnesses to New York’s greatest challenges,” with the final installment concentrating on the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks.

The original cut, distributed to certain media outlets, included interviews with members of the conspiracy group Architects and Engineers for 9/11 Truth, who maintain that the Twin Towers fell as a result of a controlled explosion.

New York Times reporter Reggie Ugwu asked Lee about the segment during a recent interview, questioning why the last episode of his series “devotes a lot of time to questioning how and why the towers fell.”

“Because I still don’t … I mean, I got questions,” Lee replied. “And I hope that maybe the legacy of this documentary is that Congress holds a hearing, a congressional hearing about 9/11.”

The director went on to confirm he is suspicious about the “official explanations” of the terrorist attack.

“The amount of heat that it takes to make steel melt, that temperature’s not reached,” Lee argued. “And then the juxtaposition of the way Building 7 fell to the ground — when you put it next to other building collapses that were demolitions, it’s like you’re looking at the same thing. But people going to make up their own mind. My approach is put the information in the movie and let people decide for themselves. I respect the intelligence of the audience.”

Lee, a native New Yorker, faced a significant backlash following the comments, with media critics also questioning Lee’s decision to amplify 9/11 truthers in an episode also featuring including first responders, politicians, journalists, and other 9/11 eyewitnesses.

“In terms of conveying facts, this is a bit like presenting COVID-19 vaccine skeptics in a debate alongside Anthony Fauci, or Holocaust deniers alongside the Simon Wiesenthal Center, or a clique of climate change skeptics alongside the authors of the United Nations IPCC report,” wrote Slate’s Jeremy Stahl, while Variety’s Caroline Framke claimed the episode proves he’s “in clear agreement with the Architects and Engineers for 9/11 Truth calling for a new investigation.”

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