Khaleel Mohammed, an Islamic studies professor featured in "Obsession," repudiated Obsession's message, calling it a "vile piece of propaganda."
In a statement Mohammed said he contributed in trying to better explain the meaning of the word jihad and that he'd thought the documentary would be objective.
Mohammed said the film is not objective and that he takes issue with some of the film's commentators.
"Many of them are not experts or have used the mantle of academic qualifications to purvey hate," Mohammed said. "That their alarmist drivel should be mixed with my whittled-down interview proves that the intent of the film is not to educate but to mislead."
Gabriele said the film perpetuated the idea of a "clash of civilizations," and despite its attempts to differentiate between the radicals and moderates, the film conflates them and confuses the distinction.
"The thing that bothered me most was the way that they bookend the movie with a disclaimer saying, 'This isn't about the majority of Muslims, most Muslims are peaceful,' while the imagery they used and the way the talking heads were speaking erased that," Gabriele said.
"There's a very clear 'we're in this together' message and a very clear sense that all of these bad guys, they're all the same; they're all in league and they're all out to get us," Gabriele said. "Then they have Michael Moore, the one token leftist, as a kind of naive Neville Chamberlain -- that we're all nave and strangling ourselves with political correctness."
Gabriele said Obsession's conflation of all Islamic movements -- even radical ones -- is a serious mistake.
"They don't talk about the differences between Sunni and Shiite. They share the same goals, but if Israel disappeared tomorrow there would be a civil war," Gabriele said. "It's dividing the world into these binary poles and we're the good guys, and while the rest may not be fighting us, they certainly want us to lose."
Gabriele said he thought the movie was electioneering and not so subtle at that.
"I think they're trying to make you afraid," Gabriele said. "When you look at the cover there's the wreckage from the World Trade Center, but if you look at the top, this is a Mahdi Army march in Iraq."
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Obsession was shown on CNN and FOX months ago. Not a peep from anyone. Now it's an issue? What a pathetic joke.
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The Interfaith Alliance has denounced this hate film that I personally received. I am an Independent voter from a swing state. Here's the link: http://interfaithalliance.org/the-news
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The 2008 Election For Dummies http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_L-iy59678
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As with most pieces of propaganda, I'd surmise that some of the information presented in the film is true, albeit taken out of context. It's no different than Michael Moore's films, nor Al Gore's film - intelligent people can deduce the slant and are able to separate the truth from the fallacies, and the unintelligent won't. That's the risk you run in a society that prides itself on upholding free speech.
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