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It’s been twenty-five years and I still remember exactly where I was standing when I heard — and I’d bet you do too. I was in college, living at my parents and we were all awoken by a phone call from my grandpa, abroad, who was watching BBC, in east coast time.
That’s the strange thing about this particular anniversary: it doesn’t fade the way other milestones do. It just gets heavier.
Many families lost their loved ones, including many Latino families and other immigrants who had family members that worked service jobs like Windows of the World. This year there is a beautiful film to commemorate them over at Democracy Now.
This week, nearly every major network and streamer is marking the quarter-century mark with documentaries, tributes and specials — some brand new, some archival gold that’s never been shown before. Here’s where to find it.
MLB Network — “When America Took The Field” Airing September 10 at 10pm ET, this two-hour documentary looks at how baseball helped the country find its footing again in the weeks after the attacks. The interview list is stacked — Joe Torre, Ken Griffey Jr., Bernie Williams, Roger Clemens, Bob Costas — and it re-airs through the 13th if you miss the first run.
CBS & Paramount+ — “Daughters of 9/11” This one hit me hardest just reading about it. Two women who each lost their fathers that day — one a firefighter, one a bond salesman on the 104th floor — form an unlikely friendship while wrestling with whether the man behind the attacks will ever be held accountable. Airs Friday, September 11 on CBS, streaming on Paramount+.
The History Channel — “102 Minutes Inside The Twin Towers” Produced by Robin Roberts, this special is built entirely around the people who were physically inside the towers and made it out — window washers, bankers, security staff, first responders. Real-time, first-person, no narration filter. Friday at 8pm ET / 7pm CT.
ABC — “9/11 Tribute in Light: Live From Lower Manhattan” David Muir, Robin Roberts and Diane Sawyer anchor this live hour from New York on Friday, simulcast on Disney+ and Hulu, ending with the actual lighting of the Tribute in Light installation over the skyline. If you’ve never seen it in person, this is the closest you’ll get.
Netflix — “Turning Point: Generation 9/11” Already streaming (since September 2), this one’s a little different — it’s less about that day and more about everyone who came after it. Kids who grew up without a parent, young journalists, an entire generation shaped by a war they didn’t start. Worth watching with older teens.
Lifetime — “Angel In The Rubble: The Genelle Guzman Story” Sherri Shepherd stars in this Robin Roberts Presents film about the last survivor pulled from the World Trade Center rubble. Saturday, September 12, 8pm/7pm CT.
Also worth knowing about: NewsNation runs something all day. National Geographic quietly dropped a massive digital archive at natgeo.com/911archive — over 100 hours of footage, 20 of which have never been public before. And if you’re watching Sunday Night Football, the Giants-Cowboys game at MetLife Stadium is building in a full pregame tribute plus a Hamilton halftime performance.
Here’s what I keep coming back to: we’re at the point now where the people who remember that morning firsthand are becoming a minority in this country. My daughter will only ever know 9/11 as history — the way I only know Kennedy’s assassination as something my mother told me about. That’s exactly why this crop of documentaries matters so much this year.
It’s less about reliving the horror and more about making sure the story doesn’t get forgotten by the next generation.