Frontline Season 17 Episode 19 The Crash

The Crash is an episode from season 17 of the investigative journalism series, Frontline. This episode takes an in-depth look into the 2008 Wall Street financial crisis, which started with the collapse of Lehman Brothers and spread throughout the global economy. The episode examines the major players involved in the crisis, including the banks, the regulators, and the politicians, and explores how their actions led to the crash.

The show begins by providing background on the housing market in the early 2000s, which was booming due to low interest rates and easy access to credit. Banks were making large profits by lending money to people who couldn't afford to pay it back, and then packaging these risky mortgages into securities that were sold to investors. The show details how this process led to a housing bubble that eventually burst, triggering the financial crisis.

The episode then delves into the actions of major financial institutions such as Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch, and AIG. Through interviews with insiders and analysts, the show uncovers how these companies packaged and sold risky assets to investors, and how they hid the true nature of these assets from regulators and the public. In addition, the episode explores the culture of Wall Street, where greed and the pursuit of profits often blinded financial executives to the risks they were taking.

The show also examines the role of the government and regulatory agencies in the crisis. The episode highlights the Federal Reserve, which was led by Chairman Ben Bernanke at the time of the crisis, and how it implemented a massive bailout plan to prevent the collapse of the financial system. The show also discusses the role of politicians, including President George W. Bush and Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson, who were criticized by some for their handling of the crisis.

Throughout the episode, Frontline provides a detailed and nuanced analysis of the causes and effects of the financial crisis. The show details how the actions of multiple actors in the financial sector and the government led to the crash, and explores the human impact of the crisis on ordinary people who lost their jobs, homes, and savings. The episode provides a gripping and insightful look into one of the most significant events in recent history, and sheds light on the complex and interconnected factors that led to the crash.