The documentary 928 The Threat Continues…, directed by Steve Jarvis and Kate Fosselman, chronicles the history of the 928 atomic bombs detonated at the Nevada Test Site between 1951 and 1996 and the literal fallout as a result. After the end of World War II, resulting from the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the U.S. government aggressively accelerated nuclear weapons development—all under the banner of national security and the rise of the Iron Curtain. However, these nuclear tests (928 to be exact) released massive amounts of radioactive fallout, which drifted far beyond Nevada, affecting communities across the northern and eastern states. Let’s be real…the entire continental United States.
Why does the general public know so little about this, except for what arises from conspiracy theories? The film details the extensive government cover-up concealing the deadly consequences of the testing. Through interviews, historic footage, and personal testimonies, victims, experts, and medical professionals describe how the fallout led to widespread cancer clusters and birth defects that would emerge in subsequent generations. Journalists like Paul Jacobs and activist groups, such as the Downwinders, began exposing these truths, challenging the Department of Energy and the military’s long-standing denials. The documentary highlights how official studies were suppressed, whistleblowers silenced, and citizens—many from marginalized communities—were treated as expendable in the so-called pursuit of nuclear dominance.
The film then explores the ongoing consequences of the nuclear tests. What exactly are you supposed to do with nuclear byproducts, such as the repurposing of depleted uranium for bunker buster bombs, missile casings, and metal hardening? This led to the government’s tactics of disguising this waste in products and weapons exports to dump nuclear waste in foreign countries. By the end of the documentary, the effects of the 928 nuclear tests persist today, as generations continue to suffer from the long-term health effects, and by a government that refuses to be transparent and show its citizens what it has done.
Five military personnel stand directly beneath a nuclear detonation point marked “Ground Zero Population: 5” at the Nevada Test Site, as depicted in 928 The Threat Continues…
“…massive amounts of radioactive fallout, which drifted far beyond Nevada…”
I give a lot of credit to documentarians Steve Jarvis and Kate Fosselman; much of this documentary is achieved by using archival footage. I think I spotted some Zoom-type interviews, but most of them were news and broadcast interviews from people who dealt with the fallout firsthand. I assume many are no longer with us.
Each interview is carefully curated and organized to uncover the truth behind the 928 tests and information hidden from the public. It then documents how much the scientists and government knew about not only the spread of the fallout but the coverup of towns and communities suddenly coming down with a similar form of cancer…areas known as cancer clusters.
To me, the most frightening part is the government cover-up. They screwed up and they refused to come clean and be transparent about it. The government was so consumed with defeating Soviet Russia that the victims of the Cold War were unsuspecting American Citizens. I’m just glad the government has learned its lesson, and Americans will no longer die because of its mistakes. Documentaries like 928 The Threat Continues… continue to cast doubt on whether what we call conspiracy theories may actually be hard facts.
I’ll end on something I wrote in my notes regarding the nature of politicians and those who seek public service for power. They assured the public that the radioactive fallout would be disposed of safely, insisting, “Trust us, we know what we’re doing.” They downplayed the risks, promised minimal effects, and then systematically covered it all up. Of course, we are a nation prone to following those in power blindly. Anyways, I’m just talking off the top of my head…nothing to see here.
"…conspiracy theories may actually be hard facts."
