Editing John Pilger (section)

=== Television ===
With the actor [[David Swift (actor)|David Swift]], and the film makers [[Paul Watson (documentary filmmaker)|Paul Watson]] and [[Charles Denton (television and film producer)|Charles Denton]], Pilger formed Tempest Films in 1969. "We wanted a frontman with a mind of his own, rather like another [[James Cameron (journalist)|James Cameron]], with whom [[Richard Marquand|Richard <nowiki>[Marquand]</nowiki>]] had worked", Swift once said. "Paul thought John was very charismatic, as well as marketing extremely original, refreshingly radical ideas." The company was unable to gain commissions from either the BBC or [[ITV (TV channel)|ITV]], but did manage to package potential projects.<ref>{{cite news|last=Hayward|first=Anthony|url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2016/apr/18/david-swift-obituary|title=David Swift obituary|work=The Guardian|date=18 April 2016|access-date=18 April 2016}}</ref>

Pilger's career on television began on ''[[World in Action]]'' ([[Granada Television]]) in 1969, directed by Denton, for whom he made two documentaries broadcast in 1970 and 1971, the earliest of more than fifty in his career. ''The Quiet Mutiny'' (1970) was filmed at Camp Snuffy, presenting a character study of the common US soldier during the [[Vietnam War]]. It revealed the shifting [[morale]] and open rebellion of American troops. Pilger later described the film as "something of a scoop" – it was the first documentary to show the problems with morale among the drafted ranks of the US military. In an interview with the ''[[New Statesman]]'', Pilger said:

<blockquote>When I flew to New York and showed it to [[Mike Wallace]], the star reporter of [[CBS]]' ''[[60 Minutes]]'', he agreed. "Real shame we can't show it here".<ref>Pilger, John (11 September 2006). [http://www.newstatesman.com/node/192475 "The revolution will not be televised"], ''New Statesman''.</ref> </blockquote>

He made other documentaries about the United States involvement in Vietnam, including ''Vietnam: Still America's War'' (1974), ''Do You Remember Vietnam?'' (1978), and ''[[Vietnam: The Last Battle]]'' (1995).

During his work with BBC's ''Midweek'' television series during 1972–73,<ref name="Hayward5">Hayward (2008), p. 5.</ref> Pilger completed five documentary reports, but only two were broadcast.

Pilger was successful in gaining a regular television outlet at [[Associated Television|ATV]]. The ''Pilger'' half-hour documentary series was commissioned by [[Charles Denton (television and film producer)|Charles Denton]], then a producer with ATV, for screening on the British ITV network. The series ran for five seasons from 1974 until 1977,<ref name="Hayward5" /> at first running in the UK on Sunday afternoons after ''[[Weekend World]]''. The theme song for the series was composed by [[Lynsey de Paul]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0312186/fullcredits|title=Pilger (TV Series 1974– )|access-date=26 May 2018|website=IMDb}}</ref> Later the program was scheduled in a weekday peak-time evening slot. The last series included "A Faraway Country" (September 1977) about dissidents in [[Czechoslovakia]], then still part of the Communist Soviet bloc. Pilger and his team interviewed members of [[Charter 77]] and other groups, clandestinely using domestic film equipment. In the documentary Pilger praises the dissidents' courage and commitment to freedom and describes the communist totalitarianism as "fascism disguised as socialism".<ref>[http://johnpilger.com/videos/a-faraway-country ''A Faraway Country''], JohnPilger.com, Retrieved 23 January 2012.</ref>

Pilger was later given an hour slot at 9&nbsp;pm, before ''[[ITV News at Ten|News at Ten]]'', which gave him a high profile in Britain. After ATV lost its franchise in 1981, he continued to make documentaries for screening on ITV, initially for [[ITV Central|Central]], and later via [[Carlton Television]].