The Panama Deception

The Panama Deception is a 1992 American documentary film that won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. The film is critical of the actions of the US military during the 1989 invasion of Panama by the United States, covering the conflicting reasons for the invasion and depicting the US media as biased. It also highlighted media bias, showing events that were unreported or systematically misreported in the news, including downplaying the number of civilian casualties. It was directed by Barbara Trent of the Empowerment Project and was narrated by actress Elizabeth Montgomery. The film asserts that the U.S. government invaded Panama primarily to destroy the PDF, the Panamanian Defense Forces who were perceived as a threat to US control over Panama. The film includes footage of mass graves uncovered after the US troops had withdrawn, burned down neighborhoods, as well as depictions of some of the 20,000 refugees who fled the fighting.