the hunting ground
the edits fall in line with the narrative of
the hunting ground .
( photo courtesy of screen shot of
the hunting ground
official trailer )
the hunting ground, a campus rape documentary that fails to provide a full picture .
a scene from the hunting ground documentary, that airs on abc2 on wednesday night .
jameis winston, the 2013 heisman trophy winner, figures into the documentary “the hunting ground. ”
the
hunting ground
features an fsu student who accused quarterback jameis winston of rape .
a crew member associated with “the hunting ground” has been making changes to the film’s wikipedia page .
the makers of
the hunting ground
tell us how this haunting collaboration came to pass .
the hunting ground
airs on cnn november 19 at 9 p. m. et .
erica kinsman tells her story in a video released by makers of
the hunting ground .
the hunting ground: a closer look at the influential documentary reveals the filmmakers put advocacy ahead of accuracy .
the hunting ground full' m. o. v. i. e' 2015
hd
kamilah willingham appears with lady gaga at a screening of
the hunting ground
in january 2016 .
' the hunting ground' crew member alters wikipedia pages to conform to film a crew member associated with “the hunting ground” has been making changes to the film’s wikipedia page. check out this story on urltoken urltoken
“the hunting ground” is rated pg - 13 (parents strongly cautioned). stories about violent sexual assault .
but the atmosphere of alarm that pervades the hunting ground does not serve accusers, the accused, or their classmates .
there is a great deal of humor and irony in “the hunting ground. ” what purpose does it serve ?
“the hunting ground” premiered last week at the sundance film festival. radius - twc will release the film later this year .
an image from “the hunting ground. ” professors at harvard law say the film misrepresents the case of a student there .
florida state is featured in kirby dick’s documentary “the hunting ground, ” about rape on college campuses across the united states .
fsu president john thrasher asked people not to watch the hunting ground. this is what he was afraid you would see .
already, 150 colleges and universities have scheduled screenings of
the hunting ground .
hundreds more have inquired about the film .
in an emailed statement, “the hunting ground” director kirby dick and producer amy ziering also denounced the website from winston’s legal team .
willingham, featured in the campus rape documentary
the hunting ground ,
said she' s
coming back swinging .
as the hunting ground shows, these legislative mechanisms have been invaluable in allowing students and survivors to hold their universities to account .
puck' s political hunting - ground - - how he has made game of the politicians / j. keppler' 85 .
the hunting ground
director kirby dick, left, and star amy ziering pose for a portrait. (ap photo )
nineteen harvard law school professors have signed a statement criticizing the documentary “the hunting ground” for its portrayal of a sexual - assault case .
winston' s legal team believes the hunting ground only focuses on one side of the story and is
replete with errors .
subscribing to the more - is - more school of documentary: a scene in “the hunting ground, ” directed by kirby dick .
alva is the assistant editor and technical supervisor for chain camera pictures, the production company associated with
the hunting ground
director kirby dick .
' the hunting ground:' acclaimed documentary about campus rape draws critics too the hunting ground, shortlisted for next year' s oscars, has inspired a backlash — not only for its perspective but for the factual foundation on which it is based and its reporting methods .
the hunting ground
features former florida state university student erica kinsman, who accused then - fsu quarterback jameis winston of rape .
“everything in the hunting ground is accurate and supported by documentation, ” director kirby dick and producer amy ziering said in a statement .
winston' s attorney, john boudet, fired off a letter to cnn this week urging the news network to not show the hunting ground .
much has been said about the hunting ground documentary, airing on the abc tonight. but just how relevant is it to australian uni students ?
from its first moments, the new documentary
the hunting ground
instills a sense of dread that is very, very tough to shake .
kirby dick' s film ,
the hunting ground ,
documents sexual assault on college campuses and features former fsu student erica kinsman .
it seems that edward patrick alva, cinematographer on the campus rape film “ the hunting ground, ” may have neglected to read that particular page .
hunting ground
crewmember alva had made multiple edits to the wikipedia pages of subjects from his film. (ap photo / sunday alamba )
an earlier version of a capsule summary for this article on the apple watch misstated the name of a documentary about sexual assault on campus. as the article correctly notes, it is “the hunting ground, ” not “the hunting grounds. ”
stuart taylor: and she made that allegation to the police, but then when the toxicology, and she made that allegation on
the hunting ground .
on tuesday, the academy of motion pictures arts and sciences listed “the hunting ground” as one of 15 films shortlisted for nomination in the documentary feature award category .
‘the hunting ground, ’ kirby dick’s new documentary on sexual violence at u. s. universities, shines a light on institutional problems and brave survivors
watch the trailer for the hunting ground, a feature documentary chronicling the personal stories of students who have been sexually assaulted on american university campuses. courtesy: madman films
“ the hunting ground, ” sexual assault, and the failure of civil society reviews the documentary from a libertarian perspective and in its context as an advocacy film .
they recommend reading investigative reporter emily yoffe’s slate breakdown of the hunting ground from june. (yoffe, by the way, just jumped ship for the atlantic. )
but in reality, it’s far from clear that the hunting ground ’s accused rapists are even actually guilty—let alone serial sociopaths who stalk and incapacitate their victims .
in
the hunting ground ,
willingham says her attacker is
a guy who’s a sexual predator, who assaulted two girls in one night .
the filmmakers of
the hunting ground
have been called out for inaccuracies, distortions and false statistics, and for disregarding journalistic integrity in order to push propaganda .
the next day, the producers guild of america nominated the hunting ground for best documentary film. on tuesday it landed on the official shortlist for next year' s academy awards .
the whole thing made me fearful for my daughter and ashamed. the hunting ground underscores all that and brings to light the faces wronged and those looking to make it stop .
when the hunting ground documentary was first screened at australian university campuses, the most common reaction was one of shock, followed by immediate denial and trademark nimby - ism .
the hunting ground is playing in a few theaters around the country. there is no word yet on when
till it happens to you
will be officially released .
the following is the transcript for the full panel discussion taped for the cnn program
sexual assault on campus ,
which aired after
the hunting ground
on sunday, november 22 .
tallahassee, fla. - - cnn is set to air “the hunting ground
this week - - a controversial documentary that focuses on sexual assault on college campuses .
the four young women, whose campus sexual assaults were detailed in the documentary' the hunting ground,' said the song will help other victims feel less
isolated or alone .
the professors claim that the filmmakers named the perpetrator of willingham’s assault. the hunting ground did not ever name the perpetrator. winston was first named by journalists, and then in the statement by the professors .
kirby dick ’s “ the hunting ground, ” a buzzed - about documentary about the epidemic of sexual assault on college campuses, premiered at the sundance film festival on friday afternoon .
amy herdy, a producer of the hunting ground, has shambolically tried to present the veneer of a balanced documentary whilst privately admitting she never intended to give an impartial account .
when and where your frustration and anger boil over while watching
the hunting ground
is an individual experience, one that will be different for everyone who sees it .
the most talked about song at the sundance film festival is one that very few people have heard: lady gaga' s
til it happens to you
from the hunting ground .
schools, rather than addressing the problem, have in many, many cases covered this up ,
says kirby dick, director of the hunting ground. the film collaborative hide caption
the hunting ground explores its disturbing subject so thoroughly that the documentary feels more like a horror film - a slasher movie where the psyches of its young, smart victims are in tatters .
watching
the hunting ground
is not going to end violence, but education and awareness are necessary steps. this film and this issue isn' t about one survivor, and the schools in
the hunting ground
are not the only schools with a problem. schools that are publicly
called out
only represent a microcosm of the situation at hand .
kinsman shared her side of the story in the hunting ground - a documentary which focuses its lens on sexual assaults on campus - and what it calls
institutional cover ups .
as criticism mounts against' the hunting ground,' set to air nov. 22, director kirby dick tells thr :
we' ve really touched a nerve .
everything in the hunting ground is accurate and thoroughly vetted. we fully stand behind kamilah willingham and all the cases we feature in the film. the facts of the cases in the film can be found here .
on mar. 24, alva edited the wikipedia page for andrea pino, one of the main accusers in
the hunting ground
to remove the word
alleged
before a description of the film .
in the hunting ground, in the absence of other named perpetrators, the quarterback is the representative rapist. research in the us and my own research in the uk has found that interracial sexual assault is disproportionately represented in news media. though it is beyond the scope of the hunting ground, a companion film which builds a collective analysis of perpetrators – thus challenging myths around race – would be invaluable .
it wasn' t until september 18, six months after creating his user profile, that alva acknowledged he had been editing wikipedia pages related to' the hunting ground.'
one reproach that’s been made against “the hunting ground” is that you hardly talk to perpetrators of sexual assaults. in fact, you only show one. did you try approaching some ?
a crew member from
the hunting ground ,
a one - sided film about campus sexual assault, has been editing wikipedia articles to make facts conform with the inaccurate representations in the film .
an official selection for the 2015 sundance and sydney film festivals, the hunting ground takes audiences to the heart of a shocking epidemic of violence and institutional cover - ups across college campuses in america .
welcome to all of you. stuart, i want to start with you. you are a critic of
the hunting ground .
what' s your biggest issue with it ?
ashe schow, in criticizing our conflict of interest, doesn’t acknowledge her own conflict of interest: she is an alumna of florida state university, an object of the hunting ground’s criticism .
last week 19 harvard law school professors released an inaccurate and misleading statement to the press criticizing the hunting ground for its portrayal of the sexual assault of harvard law school student kamilah willingham and her friend .
the documentary the hunting ground provides “a seriously false picture both of the general sexual assault phenomenon at universities” and of a case involving harvard university students, 19 harvard law professors said in a statement wednesday .
in the near term, severe public shaming will arrive via mr. dick’s film, which mentions dozens of schools by name and focuses on six. “the hunting ground” will be released in theaters on march 20 by radius - twc, a division of the weinstein company, which is known for stirring controversy to support film releases. “the hunting ground” poster resembles an ad for a horror movie .
winston and his accusers also threatened legal action against cnn for airing
the hunting ground
on sunday, claiming the documentary “manipulates, misstates or simply omits facts to present a false narrative. ”
the hunting ground is a film that features claims made about former florida state qb jameis winston, who was never charged with a crime and was cleared of wrongdoing in an fsu disciplinary hearing .
brandsynopsis: an official selection for the 2015 sundance and sydney film festivals, the hunting ground takes audiences to the heart of a shocking epidemic of violence and institutional cover - ups across college campuses in america .
willingham' s story has been picked apart in the year since
the hunting ground
was released. she said harvard mishandled her report and ultimately allowed the student she had accused to return to classes .
the hunting ground qualifies as activist filmmaking. more power to it. you can read all the statistics you want, but there' s no substitute for bearing witness - especially in such overwhelming numbers .
the hunting ground
aired on cnn on sunday, november 22, at 8 p. m. et. the film was immediately followed by a special hosted by cnn' s alisyn camerota .
the hunting ground
is a documentary that discusses rape on college campuses. a portion of the film is focused on erica kinsman and her accusation that former florida state quarterback jameis winston raped her .
the hunting ground
is not about fairness. it is about politics and ideology. for those consumed by either, the editing of truth and the destruction of innocents may seem a small price to pay .
audio of a new track by lady gaga surfaced online on feb. 27. she serves a heavy dose of heartbreaking reality on
till it happens to you
from the hunting ground soundtrack .
the power of the hunting ground lies in the first - person testimonies. women’s testimony has long been central to feminist theory and activism against male violence. feminist theory was built from the ground up, starting with women’s experiences and thinking about what they had in common in order to build an understanding of shared oppression .
nearly all of alva' s wikipedia edits have related to
the hunting ground ,
either through edits to the film' s main wikipedia page or through edits to the pages of some of the people featured in the film .
ms. kinsman came forward publicly in a documentary, “the hunting ground, ” about sexual assault on college campuses. in a statement monday, the filmmakers called the settlement “historic” and “a win for survivors everywhere. ”
the hunting ground
artfully lays out a blistering indictment of college administrators, who seem more concerned about maintaining good public relations—and more to the point, good donor relations—than they are about seeking justice for victims .
q: last week, slate published an article that attacked the hunting ground, saying it was a film that perpetuated the moral panic around sexual assault and the stereotype of women as helpless victims. how do you respond ?
mtv news has officially set up shop at the festival, so we took the opportunity to chat with
the hunting ground
director kirby dick and producer amy ziering to get the scoop on how this emotional collaboration came to pass .
the hunting ground posits that campus sexual assault is not only endemic—statistics cited in the film say that one in five women are sexually assaulted while in college—but that universities take pains to cover up instances on their own campuses .
the first few weeks i made some of my best friends, but two of us were sexually assaulted before classes even started .
those are the words of a sexual assault victim featured in
the hunting ground .
amid a growing controversy involving questions of accuracy and fairness, the makers of the hunting ground, a documentary indictment of campus sexual assaults, are defending the film, which is set to air on cnn on nov. 22 .
further hampering
the hunting ground' s
portrayal of the winston case is the fact that even the education department, in its investigation into harvard' s alleged mishandling of sexual assault accusations, failed to vindicate willingham' s claims .
a crew member associated with “the hunting ground” — a documentary focusing on rape on college campuses — has been making changes to the film’s wikipedia page and other pages with connections to the film, according to a report from the washington examiner .
still, halley praised the site and argued that viewers of the “the hunting ground” can now review allegations against winston and compare them to court documents. halley said she also placed the case documents in the harvard law school library for others to view .
whether on university campuses or in the media, we can all do better in making our culture less conducive to rape and rape myths. the hunting ground offers an important opportunity to open up these conversations on campuses around the world .
former harvard law school student kamilah willingham, whose report of being sexually assaulted by a fellow student was challenged after she was featured in the campus rape documentary ,
the hunting ground ,
is fighting back for the first time .
the documentary the hunting ground, a searing look at the failure of american universities to grapple successfully with campus rape, has been embraced by cnn and shortlisted for next year' s oscars, while helping to sharpen the focus of college administrators .
the hunting ground is a clear piece of survivors' advocacy. dick' s purpose is not to be fair to both sides. but is that such a problem when no one has been fair to his subjects ?
we believe the same is true with “the hunting ground. ” five months ago, we approached cnn’s general counsel along with the executive vice president for news standards and practices to express our concerns about the factual, statistical and ethical defects in the film .
two days before cnn is set to debut the hunting ground, an attorney for former florida state university and current tampa bay buccaneers quarterback jameis winston is warning the cable news network that its documentary about college campus rapes is defamatory .
his law studies were significantly sidetracked and he is still being attacked via the cinematic potshots of the hunting ground after being exonerated. like paul nungesser, no amount of legal and other vindication will seemingly spare winston from this fate .
cnn has said that its airing of “the hunting ground” will be accompanied by “extensive associated coverage” that will give “full and fair treatment” to the subject of sexual assault on college campuses. typically, the network would air a film twice on the day of its premiere. but “the hunting ground” is airing only once on sunday, partly because the associated discussion stretches the presentation to three hours, and partly because terror attacks and alerts around the world have given live news programming an especially high priority .
wikipedia employs
talk pages
to allow editors to discuss changes to articles. alva used the winston talk page to suggest the edit of
upheld
without disclosing his conflict of interest as a member of
the hunting ground .
legal counsel for a harvard law school student who was accused—but never found guilty in court—of sexually assaulting a fellow student and her friend have launched a website to publicly contest the portrayal of his case in the documentary film “the hunting ground. ”
you will not see or hear any of this in “the hunting ground. ” and that is why i – and i believe the presidents of other universities portrayed in the film – have decided not to participate. it’s about the journalism, not the subject .
we also take seriously the need for journalists to observe basic ethics and standards .
the hunting ground
fails to meet those standards and, as a result, fails to present balanced and responsible coverage of this very important issue .
yet the hunting ground chillingly reveals the extent to which, in a market economy where brand is everything and higher education funding is overly dependent on an old boy network of successful alumni, rape allegations are an exercise in reputation management .
“the hunting ground, ” a documentary that scrutinizes how sexual assault is handled on college campuses and heavily features harvard, misrepresents statistics on instances of reported sexual assault at harvard, calling the rigor of the film’s fact - checking process into question .
the hunting ground bills itself as a documentary about the campus sexual assault crisis in america. but as more of the film' s premises are debunked, it looks less like a documentary and more like a film in search of a problem .
nineteen harvard law professors have written a letter condemning
the hunting ground ,
a film purporting to be a documentary about campus sexual assault. the film has been getting some oscar buzz, and cnn is preparing to air the program next week .
wales renewed interest in the policies follows a washington examiner report that a crewmember of
the hunting ground ,
a one - sided film about campus sexual assault, had been editing wikipedia pages to promote the film and conform facts to its narrative .
cnn is scheduled to air the documentary the hunting ground on sunday (nov. 22) at 8 p. m. et. but a lawyer for tampa bay buccaneers quarterback jameis winston is threatening to file legal action if the film runs on the network .
we believe the same is true with
the hunting ground .
five months ago, we approached cnn' s general counsel along with the executive vice president for news standards and practices to express our concerns about the factual, statistical and ethical defects in the film .
florida state president john thrasher is also condemning the hunting ground. thrasher was invited by cnn to be on a panel to discuss the documentary, but declined because he believes the film
contains major distortions and glaring omissions to support its simplistic narrative .
a group of harvard law school professors have started a publicity campaign to challenge the depiction of the school’s sexual assault grievance process in
the hunting ground ,
a documentary film about campus sexual assault that cnn is scheduled to air on nov. 19 .
you will not see or hear any of this in
the hunting ground .
and that is why i - and i believe the presidents of other universities portrayed in the film - have decided not to participate. it' s about the journalism, not the subject .
brandon winston was hardly a perfect gentleman on the night of jan. 15, 2011. but aside from kamilah willingham’s assertions in the hunting ground, there is no evidence to suggest he is dangerous or a predator. nor do willingham’s claims of institutional indifference hold up; harvard twice delayed winston’s education while its own and later middlesex county’s adjudication processes unfolded. neither found evidence to substantiate willingham’s claims in the hunting ground, and winston has since received the punishment the legal system deemed appropriate for his actions .
the documentary expresses its anti - rape message with heart, honesty and a harrowing sense of realism, urging audiences to prevent their university from turning into a hunting ground. powerful lessons abound for not just students, but all who watch the film .
as kinsman and winston duel with each other in court — she' s suing him for sexual battery, he' s brought counterclaims for tarnishing his image — the hunting ground has lurked in the background after premiering at the sundance film festival earlier this year .
los angeles — in the face of threatened legal action from the football star jameis winston, cnn did not back away from broadcasting “the hunting ground, ” a documentary about sexual assault on college campuses that has stirred controversy since its january debut at the sundance film festival .
the documentary the hunting ground
contains major distortions and glaring omissions ,
john thrasher, florida state university' s president, said in a statement monday, comparing the film to rolling stone' s botched attempt at reporting on sexual assault at the university of virginia .
the hunting ground features the first interview with the student who accused winston of rape. that student - - who had attempted to remain anonymous during the initial investigation but was later outed by florida state fans and winston' s lawyer - - is now suing florida state .
the gender violence program screened the critically - acclaimed documentary the hunting ground on sexual assault on u. s. campuses and its impact on the victims and their families. this was followed by a discussion led by lecturer of law and director of the gender violence program diane rosenfeld .
in his letter on the fsu website, thrasher compared the hunting ground to rolling stone ’s university of virginia fraternity rape story .
if this sounds familiar, there’s good reason ,
he wrote, adding that it' s been less than seven months since rolling stone retracted its story amid
revelations that it took a victim’s story at face value without getting the other side or checking the details with other sources, including the accused .
he further added :
we believe the same is true with the hunting ground .
the makers of the hunting ground, of course, are not interested in anything resembling the truth. indeed, an email from investigative producer amy herdy made public confirmed recently this beyond any doubt. in the email, herdy told kinsman’s lawyer that the makers of the hunting ground, “do not operate the same way as journalists—this is a film project that is very much in the corner of advocacy for victims, so there would be no insensitive questions or the need to get the perpetrator’s side. ” in a separate email, herdy discusses tactics for “ambushing” jameis winston .
... in the moment (hey, there' s nothing that says documentarians have to abide by lawful definitions of
innocent until proven guilty
, i guess) there is an undeniable power to the hunting ground that is hard to ignore .
florida state university president john thrasher has declined an invitation from cnn to talk about the hunting game documentary. (getty images )
our film the hunting ground and the new york times have already detailed the extent of fsu' s derailment of jameis winston' s rape case, but a recently released, explosive deposition shows how top - level administrators were actively involved in this cover - up .
nineteen members of the harvard law school faculty, heavily tilted to the left, including feminist and black professors, wrote their own press release today assailing the campus sexual - assault documentary the hunting ground as “propaganda” that continues to smear an innocent student, their own brandon winston .
produced by amy ziering, the hunting ground joins other kramer awards recipients including an inconvenient truth, hotel rwanda, fruitvale station and last year’s the normal heart. the honor will be presented january 23 at the 27th annual producers guild awards at the hyatt regency century plaza in los angeles .
the question is whether it' s rape. and the reason i wrote about it is not so much i want to vindicate this kid. he' s got lawyers. it' s the way the media covered it .
the new york times
first, and then
the hunting ground .
there is very serious evidence casting grave doubt on her credibility, especially on the drug testing that the original version of
the hunting ground
as well as
the new york times
systematically concealed that evidence because it didn' t fit their narrative .
a powerful documentary about rape is touring uk universities. the hunting ground focuses on rape and sexual assault on us campuses and gives voice to victims and survivors. it asks difficult questions about how women have been failed by image - conscious college authorities .
as a country with a deep respect for the rule of law, we cannot allow ourselves to become a hunting ground for foreign governments to exact revenge on those it considers its political opponents. on that there should be no prevarication and no price .
the hunting ground, a 2015 documentary about sexual assault on college campuses exposed conflicts of interest, malfeasance and cover - ups. to learn about a complex topic—especially if powerful institutions have a major stake in it—we rely on experts. people who devote …
kamilah willingham, the african - american answer to emma sulkowicz. with her claims against brandon winston discredited after both harvard and law enforcement investigations, the hunting ground continues to falsely portray her as a “survivor”. she’s now creating a career as a professional sjw .
another question needs to be answered. if, in fact, neo is using
the hunting ground
as a fund raiser, did neo finance its development in any manner? is there a connection between director kirby dick and neo? the source of funding is difficult to uncover. indeed, even how much the' documentary' cost to make is something of a mystery. mojo lists the budget for
the hunting ground
as
n / a .
other sources claim it was $ 1. 8 million .
florida state university' s president has denounced the hunting ground. a group of 19 harvard law professors wrote that it
provides a seriously false picture both of the general sexual assault phenomenon at universities and of our student
accused in a case depicted in the film .
happily ,
the hunting ground
has not been well - received and its circulation has been limited. unhappily, cnn has been heavily promoting a showing of the documentary. it is irresponsible to the point of unethical for a
news
channel to do so .
“the disturbing irony is that harvard law is doing exactly what the hunting ground shows universities have done for the past 50 years: discrediting survivors to protect their own reputations and funding, all at the expense of their students’ safety and well - being, ” ziering and dick wrote .
the hunting ground and its crew have taken great care to respect wikipedia’s principles and values. as documentary filmmakers, prior to our colleague’s engagement, we agreed that the goal was to improve wikipedia according to its own standards, not to boost the film. we sought the advice of
a related concern: critics allege that the filmmakers did not seek to contact all of the men accused of attacks by the movie in a timely way. dick and ziering acknowledge they did not do so in all cases by the time t he hunting ground was first shown publicly .
i' m not attending ,
fsu president john thrasher said. thrasher is on record as calling the hunting ground
distorted
and
one sided
and says its makers did not initially disclose kinsman would be going public in the 90 minute documentary .
we respectfully but emphatically disagree with your criticisms of our film the hunting ground. instead of making unwarranted and unsubstantiated attacks on the film, we urge you to take a leadership role in addressing the problem of sexual assault that exists on your campus and far too many others .
mr. winston’s threat of legal action came a week after 19 harvard professors attacked “the hunting ground, ” saying it distorted the university’s handling of a sexual assault claim. the accusation eventually resulted in a conviction for misdemeanor nonsexual assault against a student, brandon winston, who was not named in the film, but was named in the professors’ letter. late last week, brandon winston’s defense team and supporters unveiled an elaborate website that explains their view of his actions and takes “the hunting ground” to task for what it calls “critical omissions and distortions. ”
we respectfully but emphatically disagree with your criticisms of our film the hunting ground. instead of making unwarranted and unsubstantiated attacks on the film, we urge you to take a leadership role in addressing the problem of sexual assault that exists on your campus and far too many others .
the hunting ground was released in the year 2015, some songs of the official soundtrack are till it happens to you by lady gaga, til it happens to you by lady gaga, stay gold by first aid kit, anything could happen by ellie goulding. listen the soundtrack online !
meanwhile, criticism has been lobbed at “the hunting ground” for months. shortly after its theatrical release, the harvard crimson faulted the filmmakers’ calculation of the college’s sexual assault statistics, and, in june, emily yoffe published a blistering takedown in slate of the documentary’s presentation of ms. willingham’s case .
the student in the film, nicole c. hirschhorn ’16, was a sophomore at harvard when she acted out the scene for campus comedy group on harvard time. after viewing that segment of the film, she confirmed that the clip in “the hunting ground” is from the prank video. she called the video “definitely fake. ”
after the world premiere of
the hunting ground
at sundance, senator gillibrand, a new york democrat, told me she was confident there would be strong bipartisan support for her legislation—the campus accountability and safety act—and that 20 co - sponsors were already seeking to make it happen .
the veracity of one of this year’s most talked about documentaries, “the hunting ground, ” has been attacked by 19 harvard law school professors, who say the film’s portrayal of rape on college campus is distorted, specifically when it comes to their school’s handling of one particular case .
this is not the first time the filmmakers have had to defend the hunting ground against critics. earlier this year, they posted a detailed fact page on the film' s website after slate published an article questioning some of the documentary' s claims. the harvard professors referenced that article in their statement wednesday .
critics of the hit documentary the hunting ground - which illuminates in damning detail the prevalence of sexual violence at american universities - are ramping up their attacks just in time for the hunting ground' s prime time debut on cnn this sunday, november 22. and if they aren' t careful, their aspersions might dovetail with the massive audience cnn commands to result in a spectacular backfire: for the film' s central premise is that whistle blowers on campus sexual violence are demonized and delegitimized by the very same universities who are going on the offensive in advance of sunday' s screening .
“the reason i participated in the law professors’ press release is not that a student came forward and complained about sexual assault, nor that she complained in the criminal process, ” halley said. “it is that ‘the hunting ground’ has profoundly misled the public about the ensuing processes which came out decisively against those claims. ”
chiding cnn for deciding to screen the hunting ground, fsu president john thrasher excoriated the film for its “major distortions and glaring omissions. ” its producers have fallen into the same trap as rolling stone ’s editors did with their discredited story about gang rape at the university of virginia, wrote thrasher .
in short, the hunting ground relies on false statistics and twisted accusations in order to convince its audience of a preferred narrative that rape is around every corner of college campuses. this wouldn' t be necessary if the problem was as real and as rampant as they claim .
annie e. clark is the executive director of end rape on campus and is featured in the documentary ,
the hunting ground ,
which airs on sunday, november 22, 2015, at 8 p. m. est on cnn. the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author .
what is the subtle profit? it arises at the end of the' documentary.' after heart - breaking and rapid - fire accounts of rape on campus, which offer no mitigating perspective, viewers are exhorted to
take action !
the
take action
button on the left - hand side of
the hunting ground
website takes a visitor to a page that reads ,
donate. the hunting ground is proud to partner with neo philanthropy to ensure that your tax - deductible donation supports student - led campaigns, public education, policy reform, and prevention approaches .
many of the professors challenging the documentary’s portrayal of harvard are vocal critics of the university’s own approach to handling sexual harassment and the government’s interpretation of title ix. last october, 28 professors—17 of whom signed the letter about “the hunting ground”— blasted harvard’s central sexual assault policy in an open letter in the boston globe, calling it biased against the accused .
documentarian kirby dick ’s 2012 oscar - nominated “the invisible war” was a searing look at the epidemic of sexual assault in the military. “ the hunting ground ” serves as something of a companion piece, insofar as it also explores the institutional dysfunction that leads judicial powers to turn a blind eye on victims of abuse .
now, a new u. s. documentary about sexual assault on campus, the hunting ground, features interviews with dozens of women who were attacked on u. s. campuses and who say that the only thing worse than the assault itself is how the university mishandled their cases after they reported them .
we want to make you aware that
the hunting ground ,
a film about campus sexual assaults that debuted in los angeles and new york city thursday, is seriously lacking in credibility and presents a one - sided view of florida state' s actions in the jameis winston case .
“i think it’s a terrible idea for him to go on campus educating about rape and rape culture, ” said kamilah willingham, an activist who appeared in “the hunting ground, ” the campus rape documentary. “he still doesn’t get it. he’s trying to have it both ways. ”
cnn officials believe their broadcast version of the film takes into account the concerns of the film’s critics. an earlier cut of the hunting ground — the work of director kirby dick and producer amy ziering — has been shown on college campuses across the country and has been endorsed by the obama white house as part of its national initiative to combat the problem .
“ the hunting ground truly embodies the spirit, courage and intention of the award’s namesake, ” producers guild awards co - chairs michael de luca and jennifer todd said in a statement. “this powerful documentary gives a voice to the victims of student sexual assault – a national problem too long clouded in secrecy and shielded from public attention. the visceral reaction this film evokes has mobilized audiences worldwide to take action, and has served as a focal point in campus discussions and in revising institutional policies. the producers guild is honored to recognize the hunting ground and its contribution towards greater awareness of this national problem. ”
the hunting ground
does not provide the most basic safeguards of accuracy. there is no presentation of the men' s stories. there is no indication of men who have been falsely accused, no mention of the many lawsuits brought against universities and false accusers. the film is rife with misrepresentations or outright lies .
since its debut early this year, the hunting ground has been cited as an inspiration for action by the white house and by new york gov. andrew cuomo. the film has also inspired a backlash — not only for its perspective but for the factual foundation on which it is based and its reporting methods .
the possibility of
the hunting ground
being a fund - raiser for social justice causes unrelated to rape is disturbing. the' documentary' is emotionally jarring. the new york times article notes ,
at the premiere here on friday, audience members repeatedly gasped as student after student spoke on camera about being sexually assaulted .
it leaves viewers in the sort of angry turmoil that not only drives legislation but also opens wallets. if the donations are going to a transformative grantmaker with priorities other than preventing rape on campus, then
the hunting ground
appears to exploit that issue and to do so for profit .
kirby dick’s “the hunting ground, ” a buzzed - about documentary about the epidemic of sexual assault on college campuses, premiered at the sundance film festival on friday afternoon. “i want to thank to the hundreds of survivors who interacted with us, ” dick told the packed crowd at the marc theatre before the screening. appearing with four of the [ … ]
in bringing together so many accounts, the hunting ground gives a voice to survivors while ensuring that no individual has to carry the burden of representing the group. that the accounts from women of different ethnic backgrounds, attending a variety of colleges, spanning the length and breadth of the us, echo one another, lends a collective weight .
willingham had pro bono legal representation during the law school’s administrative hearing. her lawyer, colby bruno of the victim rights law center, says in the hunting ground of the harvard process: “the message is clear: it’s ‘don’t proceed through these disciplinary hearings. ’ no matter what you do, you’re not going to win. ”
but are they succeeding? if anything, the battle between sjws and elder academics demonstrates that the former group is probably already winning. cnn’s shameless showing of the hunting ground this week, all while claiming to be a news network, only adds fuel to an assertion that the insane are running the asylum of american college campuses .
true, but these are young people who’ve been indoctrinated, and are competing with each other to be the most radical. there feet aren’t even touching the ground
till it happens to you
is featured in the film the hunting ground, which is a documentary about rape and sexual assault on college campuses. the track was penned by legendary songwriter diane warren and reportedly produced by gaga herself. audio leaked out thanks to fans who were recording it while watching the movie .
even some critics of the hunting ground acknowledge that university procedures for handling accusations of rape and sexual assault have long handled victims' concerns inadequately. those policies started changing in earnest in 2011 under reforms promoted by the obama administration and a series of reviews conducted by the u. s. department of education .
but since the film, directed by kirby dick and produced by amy ziering, came out last year, clark and pino have expanded their work to continue combating campus sexual assault. the hunting ground is not just their story, but their work may keep stories like theirs from happening again in the future .
“we’re not afraid, ” jeff zucker, president of cnn worldwide, said after the panel, when asked about a potentially forceful response from higher education officials to “the hunting ground. ” “they’re on the wrong side. ” cnn has not revealed an air date except to say that it will run the film by the end of the year .
colleges and universities have a real responsibility to keep their students safe. obviously being sexually assaulted is completely a safety issue ,
hunting ground director kirby dick told npr .
if approximately 1 in 5 women are being sexually assaulted, the schools are really failing in this area .
janet e. halley, one of the law school professors challenging “the hunting ground” and a signatory of the 2014 globe letter, said the group will launch a website and upload documents about winston’s case to further challenge the documentary. halley argued that the decision to name winston constituted “an attack” and that she and the other professors felt compelled to come to his defense .
directed by kirby dirk and produced by amy ziering, hunting ground spotlights kinsman coming forward to speak publicly for the first time about what winston allegedly did to her, as well as the ensuing investigations. at sundance, the film was warmly received, but it' s since been attacked as unfair in some circles .
the hunting ground
presents the stories of numerous young women who have reported being raped on campus by other students, only to be dismissed, ignored, cajoled, or threatened by university officials, police, and prosecutors who seek to quash allegations of sexual assault on campus for a variety of reasons .
let me admit to another reason for my lack of objectivity. i’m about to embark on a series of college trips with my daughter, a high - school junior, and have found myself jotting rape school next to several of the candidates. the hunting ground is an essential component of a college education .
“i fully support the hunting ground film, which is all about ending the silencing of survivors, ” she said. “i am bound by the principles of confidentiality under which the hearing was conducted, so i cannot say anything about the substance of the case. i can however say that the signatories of the press release represent only a minority of the [ harvard law school ] faculty. ”
the hunting ground is a documentary film about the incidence of sexual assault on college campuses in the united states and what its creators say is a failure of college administrations to deal with it adequately . written and directed by kirby dick and produced by amy ziering , it premiered at the 2015 sundance film festival . the film was released on february 27 , 2015 , an edited version aired on cnn on november 22 , 2015 , and was released on dvd the week of december 1 , 2015 . lady gaga recorded an original song , " til it happens to you , " for the film . the documentary focuses on annie e. clark and andrea pino , two former university of north carolina at chapel hill students who filed a title ix complaint against unc in response to their rapes while enrolled . the use of title ix in campus sexual assault cases became a model for universities across the country . critics of the film , including writer emily yoffe and a number of harvard law school professors , have questioned the hunting ground 's accuracy and objectivity . among the issues raised by critics are the film 's portrayal of one man as a rapist , while not disclosing that the university and the police had found him not responsible for the alleged sexual assault , and for use of controversial statistics . the filmmakers have actively defended their work , responding to most criticisms . 
the hunting ground is a documentary film about the incidence of sexual assault on college campuses in the united states and what its creators say is a failure of college administrations to deal with it adequately. written and directed by kirby dick and produced by amy ziering, it premiered at the 2015 sundance film festival. the film was released on february 27, 2015, an edited version aired on cnn on november 22, 2015, and was released on dvd the week of december 1, 2015. lady gaga recorded an original song, " til it happens to you, " for the film. the documentary focuses on annie e. clark and andrea pino, two former university of north carolina at chapel hill students who filed a title ix complaint against unc in response to their rapes while enrolled. the use of title ix in campus sexual assault cases became a model for universities across the country. critics of the film, including writer emily yoffe and a number of harvard law school professors, have questioned the hunting ground's accuracy and objectivity. among the issues raised by critics are the film's portrayal of one man as a rapist, while not disclosing that the university and the police had found him not responsible for the alleged sexual assault, and for use of controversial statistics. the filmmakers have actively defended their work, responding to most criticisms.
the hunting ground is a documentary film about the incidence of sexual assault on college campuses in the united states and what its creators say is a failure of college administrations to deal with it adequately. written and directed by kirby dick and produced by amy ziering, it premiered at the 2015 sundance film festival. the film was released on february 27, 2015, an edited version aired on cnn on november 22, 2015, and was released on dvd the week of december 1, 2015. lady gaga recorded an original song, " til it happens to you, " for the film. the documentary focuses on annie e. clark and andrea pino, two former university of north carolina at chapel hill students who filed a title ix complaint against unc in response to their rapes while enrolled. the use of title ix in campus sexual assault cases became a model for universities across the country. critics of the film, including writer emily yoffe and a number of harvard law school professors, have questioned the hunting ground's accuracy and objectivity. among the issues raised by critics are the film's portrayal of one man as a rapist, while not disclosing that the university and the police had found him not responsible for the alleged sexual assault, and for use of controversial statistics. the filmmakers have actively defended their work, responding to most criticisms.