White with Fear (2025) – Documentary Review
Directed by: Andrew Goldberg
Streaming: Available on VOD from June 3, 2025
In White with Fear, Emmy-winning journalist Andrew Goldberg delivers a piercing and sobering examination of how racial fear has been strategically weaponized in American politics. With surgical precision, this documentary lays bare a chilling truth: for over half a century, white fear has been deliberately stirred, amplified, and exploited to influence elections, shape public policy, and sustain political power.
🎥 What’s It About?
The documentary begins in 1968, tracing the infamous “Southern Strategy” used by Richard Nixon’s campaign to tap into racial resentment among white voters. From there, it follows the evolution of this tactic through modern-day political rhetoric, media manipulation, and even educational debates.
Through gripping archival footage and interviews with key voices—ranging from Steve Bannon to Hillary Clinton to Princeton’s Eddie Glaude—the film explores the insidious way fear is sold to the American public, often cloaked in dog whistles and “law and order” slogans.
💬 Highlights
- Steve Bannon’s frankness in discussing fear as a political tool is unsettling and brutally honest.
- Eddie Glaude offers the most searing critique, contextualizing the history of racial politics with a scholar’s insight and a truth-teller’s urgency.
- Archival clips from past campaigns create a disturbing sense of déjà vu—what once seemed like old headlines suddenly feel eerily current.
⚖️ Strengths & Weaknesses
Strengths:
- Offers a historical throughline that connects the past to today’s political landscape.
- Avoids sensationalism; instead, it relies on facts, interviews, and patterns that speak for themselves.
- Raises urgent questions about democracy, voter suppression, and the future of American pluralism.
Weaknesses:
- Critics have noted a lack of direct solutions or a roadmap for dismantling the systems it critiques.
- The film could have benefitted from more voices of color and grassroots perspectives to balance its focus on elite political figures.
⭐ Verdict
White with Fear is not just a documentary—it’s a warning. It forces viewers to confront how fear has been turned into a currency of power in American politics. While it may not provide all the answers, its unflinching exploration of political manipulation is both timely and essential.
Rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5)
For anyone concerned about the future of American democracy, this is required viewing.
