GROUND ZERO RISING: FREEDOM VS. FEAR to Premiere on CNBC, 9/1; Watch Preview

CNBC's "GROUND ZERO RISING: FREEDOM VS. FEAR" will premiere on Thursday, September 1st. As the fifteenth anniversary of 9/11 approaches, the World Trade Center site has become a place unlike any other. It is the sacred ground where more than 2600 people lost their lives, but now it is also something more: a vibrant public, commercial, and retail space that stands as a testament to American tenacity, rebirth and resilience.

Reported by CNBC's own Jim Cramer, this original documentary tells the story of the redevelopment of the 16-acre site, complete with the solemn memorial pools, a new park, an architecturally staggering transportation hub, and new office towers. Soaring above it all is One World Trade Center, the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere at 1776 feet high, and at a cost of $4 billion, the most expensive skyscraper ever built. Elaborately fortified and designed to thwart an attack, it boasts cutting-edge security features and was built with perhaps the strongest mix of concrete ever devised. The redevelopment of the site, a long time in the making with several years yet to go, is caught in the tension of hope and rebuilding on the one hand, and apprehension on the other. It is both an iconic destination and a potential terrorist target.

CNBC cameras get exclusive and unprecedented access inside the new security command center at the complex, and viewers hear a threat assessment from a former FBI Special Agent who helped lead the agency's New York City anti-terrorism task force following 9/11.

Jim Cramer interviews the movers and shakers who spent BILLIONS and fought epic political battles to bring the World Trade Center complex back to life. He profiles everyday men and women who inhabit the new site: a young cop on the beat, an older tour guide, and a stone mason, each with a painful connection back to 9/11 and a determination to honor those they lost. Cramer also tells the story of a man who fled the towers on 9/11, only to relocate his company, years later, in of all places ... One World Trade Center.

Preview Clips:

• Back in Business: http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000547055 - Fifteen years after the 9/11 attacks, the World Trade Center is back up and running. Even New Yorkers might be surprised to see how much is here, and what's still coming.
• A Watershed Moment: http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000547056- Media company Mic is a growing success on the internet and a growing presence at One World Trade Center. Co-Founders Chris Altchek at Jake Horowitz recently signed a ten year lease for the entire 82nd floor.
• Spare No Expense: http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000547067 - The debate over how much to spend on the new World Trade Center has gone on since rebuilding began.
• Will It Happen Again?: http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000546329- Terrorists have attacked the World Trade Center twice. Some security experts say it remains a target. Former FBI special agent Don Borelli, who helped lead NYC's counter-terrorism task force post 9-11, shares his inside knowledge with CNBC's Jim Cramer.
• Watch These Men Climb One World Trade Center's Spire:http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000546285 - The 408-ft spire on top of One World Trade Center gets inspected annually for any signs of deterioration or stress. Follow along as two climbers scale the spire wearing GoPro cameras so you can see what they see.
• What's in a Name: http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000547152 - The memorial pools, lined with the names of 2,983 victims, rest at the center of the new World Trade Center complex in the shadows of gleaming new skyscrapers.
• Mad about Marble: http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000547066 - The World Trade Center's brand new transportation hub, called the "Oculus," is lined with opulent white Italian marble. Meet Matt Crawford, the man who helped install it.
• After Tragedy, Healing: http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000547058- Greg Carafello barely escaped from the South Tower on 9/11. Despite the trauma of that day, he has come back to the World Trade Center site in a surprising way, and found peace in the process.
• A SURVIVOR Returns: http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000547060 - Greg Carafello escaped the South Tower on 9/11 with a coworker and is the only tenant of the old Twin Towers to lease space in One World Trade Center. What drove him to return to the site that caused him so much pain?
• In Memoriam: http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000547065 - The World Trade Center Complex is alive with the memories of the past. Lee Ielpi, a retired New York City firefighter, frequently shares his personal connection to 9/11 with many of the site's visitors. Find out what keeps him going.

To post a comment, you must register and login.