Page One: Inside the New York Times

Release date: June 24, 2011
Director: Andrew Rossi
Screenplay by: Kate Novack, Andrew Rossi

Page One: Inside the New York Times goes deep into the newsrooms of the New York Times, one of many media outlets that has had to compete against the internet.

Nowadays, anyone with a computer, smartphone or tablet can share news — the average Joe that used to read the news is now the one writing it. News has gone from being an institution opened to a select few, to being any-man’s-land. News spreads faster, farther and cheaper. You no longer need to print the news on paper to have people read it, everything is done by the tapping of a keyboard and the clicking of a mouse.

In this new playground, where people no longer need to pay for the latest news, where does the New York Times stand?

To understand more about how newspapers work, we get to follow the work that happens behind it all — how the news makes its way from a journalist’s desk to the front page of the New York Times. We do so by following the work on the newsroom, as well as some of the key journalists. One being David Carr who blew me away with not only his personality, but his loyalty to his workplace, as well as his work ethic. He is the kind of “old-school” journalist that researches for weeks to make sure he gets the true story out.

Then you have Brian Stelter, a former blogger that was picked up by the newspaper and was given a job. He is the poster-child of the future as he tweets and is always up to date with the latest news. Together, they are the NY Times, but they work in different worlds. Yet, they must adapt to each other to be able to keep the paper pushing forward. To me, the documentary was so engaging thanks to David Carr; he is an inspiring person.

Page One: Inside the New York Times aims to bring up a discussion about the power of media, as well as the power of freedom of speech. It brings up several key points about the development of media — from being a secluded group open to an exclusive few, how much impact newspapers as institutions have affected society, politics and history; to how the internet has changed the terms, making the institutions realize that nothing lasts forever.

The documentary is not only a great tribute to the New York Times, but to newspapers and “traditional” journalism. It also aims to bring up the discussion about the power of the word. As a documentary it is entertaining and very much educational. From the history of the American media, to how the situation looks today — Page One: Inside the New York Times makes sure to cover all of the occurrences that led to the NY Times being on the brink of falling under, but managing to survive.

Rating: ★★★★¾ 

P.S When is David Carr getting his own documentary/biopic? I want to watch that so bad! D.S

Julyssa

Music is all I do: I work in music, I write about music, I listen to music.

1 Response

  1. amy says:

    Well, this should be an interesting discussion between both the editors of this website. LOL

    I don’t think I completely bought it. I mean, it started out interesting as it was about the struggles of the NYT, but I don’t think it scratched more than the surface throughout the whole thing.

    I also felt the documentary leaned towards a little too much self-stroking at times, specially when we reached the 2nd Assange case, in which basically it told us that written media… whatever its form, it can build something up. I really don’t think the footage and documents WikiLeaks released would have been any less important that second time around with or without the NYT.

    But then again… you know me, it’s one of the reasons this blog/magazine/internet website for the leisurely bloggers doesn’t focus on breaking news.

    Btw, where do you get your news from?

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