The Titanic Disaster Hearings

On April 10, 1912, The RMS Titanic embarked on its maiden voyage from Southampton to New York City. But on the night of April 14, the British passenger liner collided with an iceberg, which resulted in the loss of more than 1,500 lives. Merely one day after the Titanic survivors arrived in New York City, a United States Senate committee began an investigation into the wreck of the great "unsinkable" ship. The official transcripts of the investigation include: the testimony of J. Bruce Ismay— British Managing Director of the White Star Line— on-duty lookout Frederick Fleet who admits that the disaster may have been avoided, and passenger Daisy Minahan, who recalls the refusal of an officer in her lifeboat to aid those adrift in the frigid waters. The moving testimony of surviving crew and passengers of the Titanic is recreated in this dramatic multicast recording detailing the fateful night. Director James Cameron used this historical record in the making of his Oscar-winning film Titanic.