The Times, they are a changing

Director Andrew Rossi’s documentary Page One: Inside the New York Times, spends one year observing the paper’s operations as it tackles breaking news stories amongst the most trying times in newspaper industry history.

Don’t let the title of this documentary fool you, The New York Times provides a decent backdrop and a narrative method, but this film is about a much bigger story. The industry of news is changing, especially for newspapers. Many publications have shed jobs and employees, while others have shut down entirely. New media has taken away readers and altered how the public receives its news, and in the end profits are suffering.

These issues are truly the core of the film. The debate over how we receive our news, how newspapers can adapt and make money, what makes good journalism, and so much more give this film its purpose.

While the foundation of the documentary is indeed the highlighting of significant events within a year at The New York Times, the cameras focus on the media desk of the publication. These reporters are followed through their journalistic routines but are mostly presented as mini-biographies—their personalities as characters driving a sense of a story and intrigue through the film.

 Rossi’s use of these journalists serves the film well. We end up caring about these people and hope in some minor way that the paper doesn’t hit hard times, not because of the greater implications, but so that these people don’t lose their jobs.

 Columnist David Carr is by far the most featured reporter. His wit and straightforward demeanor make a significant impact on screen. Media Desk editor Bruce Headlam also offers a wealth of information and context to all the peeks behind-the-scenes viewers get. The contributions of reporters Tim Arango and Brian Stelter should not be forgotten and each add their own angles to the film.

From these journalists, audiences witness the work, conflicts and debates that commonly occur in pressrooms that produce a vital civic service. If Woodward and Bernstein, via All the Presidents Men, had inspired generations of viewers to be investigative reporters, Page One will have young journalists aiming to work at the media desk.

However, while Page One hits many high points worthy of praise, it is not without its shortcomings. A number of points in the film aren’t addressed in great depth, therefore contributing to a lack of understanding on many fronts. This is somewhat understandable given the fly-on-the-wall style of filming used in this documentary—if no one in the film says it, it doesn’t get conveyed.

So when editors are debating over who will get space on page A1, little of the big picture is carried on screen. Or when the dynamics of how new media is altering the news world, especially in regard to profits, not much is expanded upon. With so much ground to cover across so many issues, it is difficult to pull them all together into a central idea.

Page One ends with few answers or conclusions to the issues presented, and viewers may not be left with a sense of closure. Some may pan this aspect, but for me it worked well within the context of this documentary. News doesn’t end. It continues and doesn’t  generally have any ending credits. Rossi cannot offer concrete conclusions because this story continues today.

Page One is for anyone who ever wrote for a publication from a high school newspaper to a major daily record. It is also for the public, the receivers of news and the society that  depends on this public good. ?