Recent Updates
Media Coverage

Filmmaker Sandy Cioffi and footage from Sweet Crude were featured on the CNN International program Inside Africa. Watch it online here. Sandy's interview is about four minutes in.

"Crude Times in the Niger Delta" ran in the Seattle Times May 21st. Take a look. Blog, podcast and a place to share your comments here. Why not take a minute to make your voice heard?

About 200 people joined the Sweet Crude crew in Seattle June 19th for an interactive, content-filled evening: Lives and Truth at Stake in the Niger Delta. A panel of international journalists, activists and human rights experts explored the deeper story and larger issues behind the Sweet Crude film crew detainment in Nigeria. The event was recorded for tv and radio. Watch an excerpt here.

Filmmaker Sandy Cioffi was interviewed by Amy Goodman for the May 9th Democracy Now broadcast. Check it out here.

On April 12, 2008, members of the Sweet Crude filmmaking crew were detained by the Nigerian military Joint Task Force (JTF) while traveling by boat in the Niger Delta.

Seattle-based Director Sandy Cioffi, Producer Tammi Sims, and photojournalists Sean Porter and Cliff Worsham, along with Nigerian-American Joel Bisina, were taken into custody and subsequently handed over to the Nigerian State Security Services.

They were held for seven days without being charged and without access to legal counsel. They were released Friday, April 18.

U.S. lawmakers; a broad coalition of colleagues, family and friends; and many international individuals and organizations worked tirelessly with the U.S. State Department and the Nigerian government to secure their release.

Read Sweet Crude crew statement

Read press releases:
American film crew detained in Niger Delta
Update: American Documentary Filmmakers Detained in Niger Delta
U.S. Lawmakers Call on Nigerian President to Release Detained Filmmakers

Read letter from U.S. Congress members to Nigerian President Yar’Adua

Read previous Sweet Crude news updates.

May 24, 2008 – Interview on KBCS One World Report Go
May 22, 2008 – Interview on KBCS One World Report Go
May 21, 2008 – Seattle Times editorial Go
May 20, 2008 – Seattle Times article Go
May 20, 2008 – Seattle PI article Go
May 9, 2008 – Interview on Democracy Now Go
April 23, 2008 – Interview on KUOW Weekday Go
April 21, 2008 – Interview on KUOW News Go
April 21, 2008 – Interview with The Oregonian Go
April 21, 2008 – Seattle PI article Go
April 20, 2008 – Seattle Times article Go
April 16/18, 2008 – Statement from Reporters Without Borders Go
April 14, 2008 – Statement from Committee to Protect Journalists Go
February 28, 2008 – Interview with The Oregonian Go
February 28, 2008 – Interview on the Thom Hartmann Show Go
February 1, 2007 – Interview on KBCS One World Report Go
December 26, 2006 – Interview on Democracy Now Go
December 20, 2006 – Interview on KUOW Weekday Go
October 30, 2006 – Interview on American Public Media Marketplace Go
September 20, 2006 – Interview on Seattle KUOW Weekday Go
September 12, 2006 – Seattle Times article Go
August 23, 2006 – Interview on Seattle KUOW Weekday Go