Agnieszka Holland Criticizes Media Coverage of Minneapolis, Warns Against “American Propaganda”

In a world awash with misinformation and propaganda, veteran filmmaker Agnieszka Holland stands resolute in her defense of truth. The Oscar-nominated director and recipient of Göteborg’s Honorary Dragon Award believes truth remains essential, though increasingly vulnerable to manipulation.

“It happened during Stalin’s propaganda and Goebbels’ propaganda,” Holland observed during her recent appearance. “It showed how easy it is to change the meaning of the words and how fragile they are.” Drawing parallels to contemporary issues, she added, “Sometimes it feels they’re becoming less and less important, like when we are listening to what American propaganda is saying about the victims of the shooting in Minneapolis.”

Holland’s concerns about truth distortion found powerful expression in her 2019 historical drama “Mr. Jones.” The film chronicles the remarkable true story of Welsh journalist Gareth Jones, who risked his life to expose the devastating Holodomor—a man-made famine that killed millions of Ukrainians in the early 1930s under Stalin’s regime. Despite Jones’s efforts to alert the world to this catastrophe, his reporting faced indifference and active suppression.

“He tried to tell the truth about what was going on, but no one was interested,” Holland explained. Her statement carries a somber warning about our current media landscape: “When the media are corrupted and play with the truth regarding political and ideological agendas, democracy dies. We are in that moment right now.”

The director’s comments resonate particularly strongly in today’s media environment, where information warfare, disinformation campaigns, and partisan reporting have become commonplace. The Holodomor itself represents one of history’s most successful information coverups, with the Soviet regime denying its existence for decades while Western journalists like Walter Duranty of The New York Times published stories dismissing reports of starvation in Ukraine.

Holland, whose filmography includes works like “Europa Europa” and “In Darkness,” has consistently explored historical trauma, totalitarianism, and moral courage throughout her career. Born in Poland and having lived through Soviet influence in Eastern Europe, her perspective on truth manipulation stems from personal experience as well as historical study.

Media experts note that Holland’s warning comes at a critical juncture when digital platforms have dramatically changed how information circulates, verification occurs, and truth is established. The democratization of content creation has brought both greater transparency and unprecedented opportunities for manipulation.

The director’s mention of the Minneapolis shooting references how even contemporary events can be framed differently depending on political agendas, creating parallel narratives that bear little resemblance to each other. This fragmentation of shared reality represents what many scholars identify as a fundamental threat to democratic discourse.

“Mr. Jones” itself demonstrates Holland’s commitment to excavating buried truths. The film not only portrays Jones’s brave reporting but also examines how other Western journalists, symbolized by the character based on Duranty, compromised their integrity for access and ideology. By juxtaposing Jones’s moral clarity with others’ complicity, Holland creates a parable for our times.

Film critics have praised Holland’s unflinching approach to historical subjects and her ability to connect past injustices to present concerns. Her works consistently ask audiences to consider what happens when convenience and comfort are prioritized over uncomfortable truths.

As one of Eastern Europe’s most celebrated filmmakers, Holland’s career spans more than four decades and includes collaborations with cinema legends like Krzysztof Kieślowski. Her perspective bridges European and American film traditions, giving her a unique vantage point on global media dynamics.

Through her films and public statements, Holland continues to champion the essential role of truth-tellers in society. Her warnings about propaganda’s dangers serve as both historical reminder and urgent contemporary caution—suggesting that recognizing manipulation is the first step toward resisting it.