Blindfolded American hostage in front of American Embassy, Tehran, Iran, 1979 (AP)
A Look Back an the Iran Hostgage Crisis Story aired: Friday, December 03, 2004
Twenty-five years ago, a group of Iranian college students occupied the U.S. Embassy and captured the world spotlight. The resulting 15-month standoff was an international humiliation for the United States, and the situation contributed to President Jimmy Carter losing his bid for re-election.
A recent article in the Atlantic Monthly asks, where are those students now? We speak with Mark Bowden, author of "Black Hawk Down," who is writing a book on the hostage crisis. He says the event shows "how nations invent their own pasts, and how the simplification of history can create impossible gulfs between peoples."
Guests:
Mark Bowden, writer and author of "Black Hawk Down"
