Politics & Film Series: Wag the Dog (1997)

A tale of politics, power and Hollywood so outrageous it could be true! Two weeks prior to reelection, the United States president lands in the middle of a sex scandal. In need of outside help to quell the situation, presidential adviser Winifred Ames (Anne Heche) enlists the expertise of spin doctor Conrad Brean (Robert De Niro), who decides a distraction is the best course of action. Brean approaches Hollywood producer Stanley Motss (Dustin Hoffman) to help him fabricate a war in Albania — and once underway, the duo has the media entirely focused on the war. The methods for creating an “alternate reality” are presented in the context of a presidential election.

This film is the second in a five-part series entitled HOW IN THE WORLD DID WE GET HERE?? American Politics and Film.

Michael Krasner, political science professor emeritus and long-time political activist, designed this series to provide an entertaining framework for political analysis, and will introduce each film and then lead in-depth discussions after each showing.