The Vietnam War - Episode Guide

After a long and brutal war, Vietnamese revolutionaries led by Ho Chi Minh end nearly a century of French colonial occupation. With the Cold War intensifying, Vietnam is divided in two at Geneva. Communists in the north aim to reunify the country, while America supports Ngo Dinh Diem's untested regime in the south.

President Kennedy inspires idealistic young Americans to serve their country and wrestles with how deeply to get involved in South Vietnam. As the increasingly autocratic Diem regime faces a growing communist insurgency and widespread Buddhist protests, a grave political crisis unfolds.

With South Vietnam in chaos, hardliners in Hanoi seize the initiative and send combat troops to the south, accelerating the insurgency. Fearing Saigon's collapse, President Johnson escalates America's military commitment, authorizing sustained bombing of the north and deploying ground troops in the south.

Defying American airpower, North Vietnamese troops and materiel stream down the Ho Chi Minh Trail into the south, while Saigon struggles to "pacify the countryside". As an antiwar movement builds back home, hundreds of thousands of soldiers and Marines discover that the war they are being asked to fight in Vietnam is nothing like their fathers' war.

American casualties and enemy body counts mount as Marines face deadly North Vietnamese ambushes and artillery south of the DMZ and Army units chase an elusive enemy in the central highlands. Hanoi lays plans for a massive surprise offensive, and the Johnson Administration reassures the American public that victory is in sight.

Seeing the violence and brutality of the Tet Offensive unfold on television, Americans begin to doubt Johnson's promise of "light at the end of the tunnel." LBJ decides not to run again. The country is staggered by assassinations and unrest.

With the country at odds over the war, draft-age Americans face wrenching choices. After chaos roils the Democratic Convention, Nixon narrowly wins the presidency. In Vietnam, soldiers on all sides witness terrible savagery and unflinching courage.

When troop withdrawals begin, soldiers left in Vietnam ask what they are fighting for. News breaks of a shocking massacre at My Lai, and questions grow about the war's rectitude. The Cambodia invasion sparks large protests, with tragic consequences.

South Vietnamese forces fighting on their own suffer a terrible defeat in Laos. After being re-elected in a landslide, Nixon strikes a peace deal with Hanoi that allows American prisoners of war finally to come home to a bitterly divided country.

Nixon resigns amidst Watergate, while a brutal civil war continues in Vietnam. North Vietnamese troops overtake Saigon with overwhelming force. For the next 40 years, Americans and Vietnamese from all sides search for healing and reconciliation.

This program takes a look at creation of the upcoming series from Ken Burns and Lynn Novick: The Vietnam War. Featuring interviews with the filmmakers, behind-the-scenes footage, and exclusive clips from the series, this program will give viewers an advance look at this Fall's most anticipated film.