"When I acquired ABC, everyone in the motion picture companies had refused to deal with television, but Walt Disney wanted to build Disneyland and he needed money. I made up my mind that I was going to do everything in our power to bring Disney into television. If I could crack Disney, then I could maybe crack the other motion picture companies."
"It's not enough just to tell the truth. Then you're doing the History Channel. There's something to be said for that, but it may not always be compelling. And it's not enough just to be interesting, because then you're doing Paris Hilton and her elephant. You know it'll be interesting, but it's cotton candy. If you can tell the truth in an interesting way, then you accomplished something."
"You have to be true to yourself, to what you believe in. You have to have a bottom line. You have to have some place beyond which you know you can't be pushed. It's not politics. It's morality."
"I have made some very, very good and tough documentaries that have changed some things. And coming from my blacklisted background, where I was unable to do so much for so long, the ability to take this journey into situations and people's lives and to give them my letter to the world, is a very important part for me. And of course, I love directing films, too."