Apple TV+ is launching a dual podcast-TV series that should catch the eye of just about anyone paying attention to military news in recent years.
“The Line” is being touted as an “independently reported” endeavor to expose “previously untold aspects” of the story of controversial former Special Warfare Operator Chief Eddie Gallagher, who faced charges in 2018 for alleged war crimes in Iraq, including the murder of an Islamic State detainee.
Gallagher was acquitted on all charges except one: posing for a photo next to the corpse of a 17-year-old militant. The jury’s recommended sentence of reducing Gallagher’s rank to E-6 was nullified after then-President Donald Trump intervened in the case, paving the way for Gallagher to retire as a chief. Subsequent discussions to strip Gallagher of his SEAL trident were also quashed.
“I put a black eye on the two communities that I love — the U.S. Marine Corps and the U.S. Navy — specifically the SEAL community,” Gallagher said at the time.
“I’ve made mistakes throughout my 20-year career — tactical, ethical, moral — I’m not perfect but I’ve always bounced back from my mistakes. I’m ready to bounce back from this.”
“The Line” will be delivered in two parts, the first of which, a six-episode audio series hosted by Dan Taberski (”Missing Richard Simmons,” “Running from COPS”), launched April 6 and is available through Apple Podcasts. Two episodes are currently available, with new installments uploaded every Tuesday. The trailer to the audio series is available below.
The second segment of the multi-platform story will come as a four-part documentary series premiering in fall 2021, Apple announced.
“Both series will examine the complicated realities involved with fighting a decades-long war, stripping back the layers surrounding Gallagher’s alleged crimes,” according to the Apple release.
“The immersive Apple TV+ original podcast employs exclusive investigative reporting, one-on-one interviews with Gallagher and his wife, and extraordinary access to over 50 current and former special operators, giving listeners an inside understanding of the psychological toll on service members embroiled in ceaseless warfare, the secretive culture of the military’s most elite special operations units, and the struggle for justice in the fog of war.”
Listen to “The Line” on Apple Podcasts here.
J.D. Simkins is the executive editor of Military Times and Defense News, and a Marine Corps veteran of the Iraq War.
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