Loose Change (film) - Criticism

Criticism

Journalists, researchers, as well as scientists and engineers, and members of the 9/11 Truth movement have spoken out against the film's claims about the September 11 attacks.

Loose Change has been subject to criticism from a variety of different sources. In March 2007, the United States Department of State published an article called "Loose Change Debunked" in which it says the movie makes "sloppy mistakes". The article is highly critical of the evidence cited to support the claim that Flight 77 did not hit the Pentagon, and it criticizes the controlled demolition hypothesis of the World Trade Center claiming that "demolition professionals say controlled demolition of the Towers that day would have been impossible." The article goes on to say:

It treats statements made at this time as if they represent reasoned judgments, not impromptu, often poorly thought-through misimpressions and uninformed speculation... In sum, Loose Change is researched very shoddily, making numerous mistakes of fact and judgment. Nevertheless, this has not prevented it from becoming extraordinarily popular.

It goes on to note that Loose Change has also been criticized by other members of the 9/11 Truth Movement, referring specifically to the critique Sifting Through Loose Change. Michael Green, a member of the 9/11 Truth Movement, has analyzed the film and is critical of many of its claims and methods. Several independent researchers have also written critiques of the film. The Loose Change Guide, created by Mark Roberts, features the whole transcript of the show, along with his comments and criticisms. Roberts also compiled a lengthy selection of interview quotes in which the Loose Change creators elaborate on the claims made in the film.

In May 2006, the blog Screw Loose Change was created to criticize the claims in the film. In collaboration with the creators of the blog and drawing upon the work of Mark Roberts, an edited version of Loose Change was created with subtitled criticisms. Another analysis of the film has been created by the Internet Detectives. Many of the critiques argue that Loose Change quote mines, uses unreliable or out-of-date sources, and cherry-picks evidence to claim that there are serious problems with official accounts of the events of September 11.

One of the many aspects focused on by these critiques is Loose Change's analysis of the collapse of the World Trade Center. The comparison to other notable high-rise fires which did not lead to collapse ignores differences in building design, significant WTC structural damage and compromised fireproofing, as most steel loses over half its strength at 600°C (1112°F). The comparison with Madrid's Windsor Tower fails to note its steel-supported perimeter floors that collapsed during the fire. Kevin Ryan, described by Loose Change as working for Underwriters Laboratories (UL), was actually employed in a water-testing subsidiary. Furthermore, UL does not certify structural steel, and ASTM E119 certification is not meant to predict performance in real uncontrolled fires. The NIST found no evidence of any firm having conducted tests on WTC materials in the past. Another expert quoted, Van Romero, has clarified that he was misquoted by the Albuquerque Journal; he had actually said that it "looked like" explosives took down the WTC. When the misquote was printed, he felt his "scientific reputation was on the line."

On September 11, 2006, the public-TV network program Democracy Now! broadcast a discussion between two Loose Change creators and two editors from Popular Mechanics, where they debated at considerable length various aspects of the documentary. Jason Bermas claimed United Flight 93 did not crash into the field, and classified Popular Mechanics as a publication in the spirit of Hearst's yellow journalism.

George Monbiot, political activist and columnist for the Guardian, wrote an article on the improbability of the conspiracies cited in Loose Change, and then wrote a follow-up article in response to negative comments from some of his readers. On SModcast, Kevin Smith discussed Loose Change and other conspiracy videos about aliens and various things. However, he maintains that he enjoys the film purely as entertainment, and does not believe or agree with the theories presented in the film. The Best Page in the Universe parodied the movie with a short video, "Unfastened Coins", that "exposes" a Titanic-sinking conspiracy, and an article mocking the logic of conspiracy theories in the film. The History Channel aired a two-hour episode entitled "The 9/11 Conspiracies: Fact or Fiction?" featuring interviews with the creators of Loose Change.

In Britain, BBC's documentary television show The Conspiracy Files aired two documentaries focused on 9/11 and the conspiracy theories surrounding the collapse of WTC7. Several claims made by Loose Change were investigated and specifically rejected. Dylan Avery was interviewed for the program, which cast him in a negative light.