One of the best things about doing a couple of internships at some big daily papers (The Houston Chronicle and The Dallas Morning News) was working with some of the old guard, hard-drinking journos who had a knack for keeping politicians and any shady business types on their toes. There was a relentlessness and an idealism about them and they were very fond of repeating the rules - about conflict of interest, about fighting the good fight and most of all about giving a crap about every story no matter how small.
Because I heard those speeches over and over again, I assumed everyone heard them from someone with a drink in one hand and an AP Style Manual in the other at some point in their professional development. Oh, how very, very wrong I was.
It's safe to say we live in more of a NETWORK world than an ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN world. But the first time I watched the latter (fullscreen VHS, no less) was the moment the importance of accurate, trustworthy information and the role of journalists in providing it started to seem incredibly meaningful to me.
This movie perfectly captures a generation in a sort of free-fall of disillusionment. The way the two reporters stumble onto clues that reveal the story is far bigger than they could have imagined says a lot about how much the public has come to distrust government in the last 35 or so years. At the time this movie was made the full extent of the scandal was still shocking to most people.
And given the timing of ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN and the state of the country and the world at the time, it makes perfect sense Woodward gave his primary secret source the name of a legendary porn film. I'll let you make up your own joke about "stripping" away illusions here.
It's also magical that Robert Redford used his youthful hotness powers for good through this movie. I'm sure there were plenty of people who went to see the movie to spend two hours with the Cute Cuterson of the day. Hopefully they came away with a greater understanding of the Constitution and the powers who have little or no interest in guarding it.
Awhile ago I realized that since we're in a digital, webby world I'll never be able to fulfill my fantasy of yelling "Stop the Presses!" If I ever uncover something so scalding hot it has to get out there right away some code monkey will just update the site linked to the print version.
I know it's immediate. It's just not very sexy.
Hoping you'll dig this original theatrical trailer:
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