NATO Meets Screenwriters in UK... Arts Community Voices Discomfort Over "Political Propaganda"

The Guardian Reveals Email from British Writers' Guild
"NATO's Message, Hopes to Be Reflected in Future Stories"
Some Writers Criticize: "Art Used to Support War"

As the Iran war drags on and the reduction of U.S. troops stationed in Germany heightens Europe's security crisis, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has been meeting with TV and film producers, drawing criticism that these efforts amount to propaganda.

U.S. President Donald Trump leaving the press conference venue at the NATO summit held in The Hague, Netherlands, in June last year. Photo by Reuters Yonhap News

According to Yonhap News on May 3 (local time), citing the British daily The Guardian, "NATO has recently held three meetings with film and TV professionals in Los Angeles, USA; Brussels, Belgium; and Paris, France." The report also stated, "Next month, NATO plans to hold a series of closed-door meetings in London with screenwriters who are members of the Writers' Guild of Great Britain (WGGB)."

The main topic of the London meeting is reportedly "the changing security landscape in Europe and beyond," with former NATO spokesperson James Appathurai, who currently serves as NATO’s Deputy Assistant Secretary General for Hybrid, Cyber, and Emerging Security Challenges, expected to attend.

An email from WGGB obtained by The Guardian stated, "NATO was founded on the belief that cooperation, compromise, friendship, and alliance are the way forward," and, "Even such a simple message, if included in future stories, would suffice." According to The Guardian, the email also mentioned, "These meetings have already led to the development of three separate projects."

NATO flag fluttering. Photo by Reuters and Yonhap News Agency

In response, Alan Oghorman, writer of the film "Christy," criticized, "NATO is attempting to spread its message through film and television," calling it "blatant propaganda." He added, "Presenting this as a positive opportunity is out of touch with reality and madness," noting, "Many people, including myself, are either from countries not in NATO or have friends or family from countries that have suffered from wars NATO has participated in or fueled." He also mentioned, "Other screenwriters invited to the meetings were quite uncomfortable with the idea that art is being used to support war."

Screenwriter and producer Faisal A. Qureshi commented, "The danger for creators entering the 'world of undisclosed sources,' such as intelligence or military briefings, is that they may mistakenly believe they have gained some secret knowledge." He continued, "As a result, moral standards can become lax, and one may come to believe there is a 'gray area' where even human rights violations can be justified for a greater cause."

Regarding these events, a NATO official explained, "This is the fourth in a series of sessions for fiction writers in the entertainment industry," and that "these meetings originated from the interest of industry professionals who want to learn more about what NATO is and how it operates." WGGB stated, "We receive invitations to events from external organizations that may be professionally useful or interesting to our members. Such exchanges do not necessarily mean support for the organization in question," adding, "We simply provided writers with an opportunity to ask questions and gain information freely."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.