The Newsroom (2012)

As Election Night 2012 winds down, Will and Charlie await a decision from Reese that may impact their future at ACN, and that of the entire senior staff. Sloan learns the identity of the anonymous winning bidder for her book. Don discusses a countersuit against Jerry with Rebecca. Neal turns to Hallie for help giving Mac a parting gift. Jim tries to make peace with Lisa, encouraging Maggie to do the same. Will has a revelation while Charlie is sharing his. MORE -LESS

- 'Cause it's one or the other. - It's not even a contest.

- The ground game. - You talking to me?

I'd have to make my dog Howard a partner.

No one can see or hear us.

- Any chance this can wait? - No.

- Fix the page. Get it fixed. - Copy.

Yeah, but you don't think the strange part

From what I understand, if I accept your resignations,

- He's given me reasons to. - No, no, he hasn't.

He's already told us how he's gonna...

Hit refresh.

Here it comes.

that we have better people working the numbers.

That's not gonna be necessary.

or answer any of my calls.

I'm not really sure. We returned it that afternoon.

I don't understand this at all.

He doctored the tape and he gets to sue us?

- Do you know how frustrating this is? - Careful.

- Spiders? - You get a kick out of yourself, don't you?

Did Maggie cut her own hair?

- Copy. - But if we're able to call Florida,

- The entire world... - Sorry, we're gonna make an important call.

would be for us to concoct 13 additional crazy Democrat stories?

a 90-second segment on income and voting preferences.

- You know, now that I'm saying it... - Not until just now?

And it's the top 1% of female earners that went red.

So the President's getting closer and closer to that magic number of 270.

And now he's losing.

Listen. Listen for a second.

There was a beep. It was an iNews alert.

Oh, I thought you might because you revealed your party affiliation on the air last year.

And I have to have such a stunning inferiority complex

We've come a long way.

I can't tell what you're thinking.

Does anyone know where MacKenzie is?

Third generation Rockette. That's how we roll.

First of all, no one's resigning.

In the wake of Leona's refusal to accept the resignations of three top ACN talents, 'News Night' goes forward with its 2012 election coverage, featuring Will in the unlikely role of director of morale. Sloan is perturbed that her book was auctioned off with a forged signature, while Mac tasks Neal to fix a faulty Wikipedia page. Mindful that Charlie wants a screw-up-free evening, Jim weighs the cons of retracting a call he made too soon. The team deliberates whether to hold off on a story that might affect a tight Senate race. MORE -LESS

- The DOD doesn't talk to us. - Do you think that's maybe

Reese is having a viewing party upstairs?

All right. Can I have a moment?

Good show.

I don't want to get in the middle of anything,

Is there an ancient grudge between your two families?

So, why not just donate the money directly to Sandy? Which is what I did.

33 Senate races, 538 electoral votes...

- "We should be able to look past the..." - Wow.

- Cool. For privacy.

You know we're in no mood to be fucked around with, right?

- Got it. - Okay.

will be speaking in your ear at once, but usually it'll be 10.

Why? We're gonna be spending plenty of time talking about it.

- So far. - And you'd agree I'm responsible?

and wrecking your professional life, too, which, let's face it,

pretending to cast a vote.

- Here we go. Three minutes.

- Clear the set, please. - Thank you.

- ...South Carolina, Vermont,

Their phones were taken at the door.

that I convince you to accept my resignation and Will's.

these people don't deserve to have a piano strapped to their back.

Then why don't you?

Forty-five seconds for the impact for the Latino vote.

- I really like your hair. - Thanks. That's sweet.

- Thank you. - And you're handsome, too,

The men and women in here are monitoring nearly 500 races.

- You've been doing great. - Thank you.

Except Sloan who's flipping out because somebody bought her book

Do you really think your shower buddy has got a story or is he stalling?

The biggest effect it had was on the media.

And what did you say?

So, you see, you've got to talk to me before you say things.

Pardon me. The Republican is a train conductor and gay.

- It's right here. - What did I say?

We called Michigan when we meant Mississippi.

- 51-49. - That's not as close as...

are having trouble gaining access to the airwaves.

at the top of the hour. Let's look at where we are.

that comes directly from the source of the article.

About a third of the vote now in in Virginia.

Yeah, it's okay. But I'd appreciate it if you kept me out of it.

- I don't think we need to tell Mac and Will... - No.

It wouldn't necessarily look like scapegoating.

Through depositions with the newsroom staff, Rebecca pieces together the events that led to ACN's fateful decision to go forward with Jerry's special report on Operation Genoa – as well as the post-air revelations that undermined its credibility. The repercussions threaten to ruin "News Night" while eclipsing breaking news during another 9/11 anniversary. MORE -LESS

Rebecca, if he doused the studio in kerosene

so that when the white team is ready, they can...

And I grant you it would've been better

- Yeah. - Mark is asking did he hurt himself

I wasn't sure, but I didn't have time to think about it until we were out of there.

Rebecca, I run our website. I'm not an investigative reporter.

which I knew I could take out later. Is this important?

him or her as reliable and in a position to know.

- I'd take Jim's gut. - Me, too.

- Don. - When Jim doesn't feel good about a story,

I'm just making sure we know what we're accusing these guys of.

- In a matter of days? - Hours, really.

For everyone at ACN Reports, I'm Will McAvoy. Good night.

Chemical weapons expert wants to kill me. I make the worst enemies.

Hockey, you can hang onto the puck for as long as you want,

- Hmm? - You'd take her word for it in her condition?

are about to take a journey by sea to ask the Duke of Verona for his most kind blessing.

Go through this and separate it into four piles,

when they add live-plus-same-day and live-plus-seven.

Piers Morgan and Rihanna had a Twitter fight about her haircut.

He polled everyone to see if they were still standing by the story.

That was another clip from last night's ACN Reports,

"The charge that US Special Operations used sarin gas is absolutely false."

but we're coming back with Eric Sweeney, a MARSOC on Operation Genoa.

Just back up. We'll do this step by step. He had two Purple Hearts.

He lied about an injury

If it hadn't been our own story, wouldn't you have kept going?

60%.

MacKenzie had realized at the time of the meeting

unless I volunteered it, I wouldn't volunteer it.

Tell me one more time we got it right.

- Are you sure you don't want to sit? - We're in a garage!

- I'm sorry. - You didn't step in.

Civil rights leaders and the ACLU rush to her side

He put out a call to protest a movie called Muhammad's Tribe.

There's a mash-up of it on YouTube.

And that's what O-rings do.

- They have more than one? - I don't know if that was the implication.

in that situation and the situation they were in.

I wouldn't have done this on any other story and I wouldn't have done it unless I was sure!

May have nothing to do with Cairo and it's a 9/11 anniversary attack.

attacked the United States consulate in Benghazi, Libya, today,

I'm sorry, Will. I really am.

Elliot Hirsch, Sloan Sabbith, Terry Smith, Dayside ACN, ACN.

Mac and Charlie score a key witness, a retired Marine general, in their attempt to corroborate Jerry's Operation Genoa story. Will follows Nina's lead to soften his image by making an impromptu appearance on a morning talk show. Jim gets unexpected company during his reunion with Hallie, who's in town to cover a Romney rally.

Deit was in the region working for an NGO

I also don't believe in Santa Claus, but if I saw eight reindeer take flight...

Yes, but he's gone. We believe given his proximity to the raid

So we started looking for someone not on the list.

Yeah.

I'll tell you why you should be excited about tomorrow night.

Jim, I'll have just finished covering a $5,000-a-plate dinner.

So Congressman Roskam introduced House Resolution 21-39,

While Senator Shelby held up Peter Diamond's nomination

They may take it in the teeth on John Carter, but nobody's gonna get hurt.

Well, hurry up and tell me what you want.

Foul him. Foul him now!

So you think chemical weapons should be part of our arsenal?

You can't touch a shooter while he's in the process of shooting the ball.

- Mmm-hmm. - That's it.

for a firewall between religion, any religion, and government.

We have a lot of reasons to be concerned with Obama's plans,

And here's Rick Santorum's opponent, Mitt Romney,

Also, honey, you've got to stay away from religion.

- Really glad I came tonight. - There's no way you're coming to dinner.

- You here alone? - Yeah. You?

And I thought he was gonna duck the question,

- And Charlie. - So do I.

- How much? - Yeah.

who's 10 years younger than I am with three percent body fat

- chilled silken tofu garlic and herbs? - Yes, it is.

Just go on and do some jokes?

and that if faith is important to his good works and personal narrative,

What are you doing here?

I know, babe, but still, just saying that...

Secrecy is incredibly important.

Every throw that goes through the tire is $1,000

I was aiming for the fucking light tree.

But that does mean you might lose

1,300 planets were identified, but only two confirmed.

We're gonna blur it out.

You can sit right there, sir.

- Was sarin gas used during Genoa? - It is right.

Were any exceptional measures used in the operation?

President Obama told ABC News' Robin Roberts

With three days to go before delegates converge on Tampa Bay, Florida,

Will is distracted during his telecast by a phone call and an unflattering Twitter post. Charlie gets a visit from a longtime friend at the Office of Naval Intelligence, who has knowledge of Operation Genoa. Sloan phases from humiliation to rage following a revenge posting. The newsroom traverses the slippery slope separating fact from fiction.

But the released Sergeant Bales...

- Sorry. - Sloan, this wasn't a stalker

- Are you doing anything? - Yeah.

- Hello, is someone there? - Mr. Kouri?

I'm sorry, 8:00 your time-- If I call back after 8:00,

Vice President Biden was in Toledo, Ohio, today speaking to the UAW...

How long is the tape?

from The Righteous Daughters of Jihadi Excellence.

Could you call me back at the office?

You don't think there's a little phony outrage?

A distraction from what, they never say.

And I said hello. What in the fuck?!

I'm being kind, MacKenzie. What do you want me to do?

And you know what else? Every time you see me,

Did not know what a quintillion was,

And the frog says, "Hey, fuck you. I've been sick."

No, I'm not going on TV and interviewing--

What was that?

We've seen a host of contentious women's issues

A time when it takes guts to speak out for conservative values.

That's such a news name.

♪Parentspleasedonthateme."

- Mostly bad stuff? - And Pepper Burke sent out another tweet.

Look, I get that it's stupid, but it has an effect.

- All that's on my Match.com profile. - Maggie.

to moral authority around the world.

No, you go in straight through the entrance

The Obama plan moves you towards $9 or $10 or more.

What are you telling me?

- No. - It's not?

WorldNetDaily. I've been calling Adams. That was the third time.

or he's on drugs or something.

A benefit never afforded to Trayvon.

We dropped sarin. This is a true story.

- Why? - We screwed up.

You want to get onstage and you want to call him Tyler

I get it. As long as it doesn't turn serious.

Stewart?

Maggie tries to convince Rebecca that she’s fine following her shattering trip to Africa with Gary. An Occupy Wall Street protester with a Black Op lead refuses to cooperate with Neal and Jerry after an on-air interview with Will goes poorly. Jim lands Hallie a one-on-one, but gets heat from Mac as a result.

Look, it's not like I don't know what this is gonna be about

who's the leader of the Lord's Resistance Army.

- We'll be right back. - Three minutes back.

A fast series of tweets where he describes Genoa.

of Occupy Wall Street, Shelly Wexler.

- It's Congress who does that. - Yes.

Is there any chance that's because you're not?

Yeah, we're still covering the campaign, we're just...

We'll be in the bar or on our half-empty floor.

which was in the Nakapiripirit District in the Karamoja region.

and they come and steal your cattle.

- How angry? - She punched me in the stomach.

Feel free to be superior.

Stop doing that!

Kendra, run the meeting. I'll be back in a minute.

I don't believe that's really the story.

Kodak is dropping like a sack of flour.

And I am supposed to be impressed

So there was this kid named Daniel who was by himself the whole time.

"This is the house.

He's never seen hair like yours.

He does and that is the official comment of the Romney campaign.

You're gonna have a 30 minute one-on-one with the Governor tonight at 10:00.

- Please stop arranging meetings. - Just listen to what...

- to reach that conclusion in 15 seconds. - It does.

Slavery, suffrage, civil rights, Vietnam,

You were a handy prop and I'm sorry I embarrassed you.

And tomorrow morning, nearly four years after her initial detainment,

Other than that, was it a good show?

during a relentless onslaught

You have to go back to New York.

What do I have to look like for my testimony

But then we heard another pop, pop, pop.

Out the back on the bus, head below the windows.

It was, "Give us the camera."

Will continues his mission to civilize by telling Nina Howard the truth. A new witness to the Genoa story emerges on Twitter, and in New Hampshire, Jim's efforts to have his questions answered continue to fall on deaf ears.

do you intend to circumvent the progress that's been made

But unfortunately, none of them were on the stage.

- I was mesmerized, and a little bored. - Okay.

- He got shot. - Before he got shot.

Tell me those options again.

- Don't mock this. - It's literally impossible not to.

and he'll focus as well on the failures of ObamaCare to meet the needs of the country.

You think you're scoring wise-ass points, and he's plainly fucking with you.

- I want to meet Sweeney. - Now we're talking. Noon?

- And speaking of voice mail... - We weren't.

Because sometimes, you're not as cute as you think you are.

to tell the audience that he wasn't interested in the votes of anyone who was booing.

...and expressing no expectation of surges from Huntsman, Gingrich or Santorum.

I think I remember we asked for an AC-130 Spectre gunship

Some of them passed out. I hadn't seen anything like it.

Are you sure the AWM executive dining room is the safest place to meet?

the 9/11 anniversary coverage should be handled by someone else.

but, Nina, are we okay with being Mean Girls and Heathers

Do you think you'd like to go out sometime to dinner or a movie on a date with me?

The guy's paid for an hour, so...

Guy owes money on a Jet Ski, we're not gonna believe him?

Anyone who works here, move your stuff someplace else.

Saudi Arabian women will be given the right to vote in 2015.

Uh-huh. Keep going.

This was a colossal waste of time, so I'm going to try meeting with graphics.

when I'm writing the story in my blog.

Aren't you always having a tough time with him?

In my defense, I was accused of lying to get out of a date.

And ask the questions you wanted answers to.

You should have today's talking points in your e-mail, but I will just reiterate them here.

where Governor Romney unveiled his Day One, Job One plan

- Your guy can't just e-mail the translations? - He doesn't like e-mail.

Protesters marched last Saturday and got pepper sprayed by the police.

Their worst crime is making the Tea Party look good.

If I don't get a name soon, I'm just gonna start randomly firing people!

Just tell people what happened today, what to do tomorrow.

What do we think the appropriate punishment should be?

- Did you forget the combination? - No.

I don't like the condescension or that I'm an object of derision for you.

I think I... Wait.

What's the Governor's plan with regard to Iran?

- Sit down, Jim. - Ask.

It's not a press bus. It's a free media bus.

So you and Gary are going to an orphanage in north Uganda

I don't remember it word for word, but it was about how you did a great job.

A tip on a story that will ultimately cripple the network starts to become more real. Mackenzie and Sloan continue to push Will on drones as Don urges Will to advocate for Troy Davis. Maggie is un-friended by her roommate, but gets the assignment she's been begging for. Neal gets arrested on Wall Street.

He's not taking my calls.

Yeah, except it's named for a kind of sail on a boat.

- Do I have to go on? - Mind if I ask you something?

You can say whatever you want in front of anyone who works here.

- The shower. - Oh, dude.

- But that's not the point. - What is the point?

Excuse me.

...have recanted their testimony,

They're hounded by reporters and activists

Look, I get that you want a pro-death penalty crime fighter making noise,

What is it? It's almost midnight.

Will, the smoke is still billowing out of the western side of the Pentagon,

Then I tried getting it taken down under their copyright policy...

And only two-thirds of Republican voters know who Perry is,

- You remember what I said, right? - Yeah.

Yeah. We did. We did make up.

This is the most views I've ever had, and it links to my blog.

You know what? You cannot say Charlotte.

- The whole thing? - The whole thing.

a retired Marine gunnery sergeant

- Give me advice. - Be specific and have it have

I didn't ask.

Police estimate there were 300 people in Zuccotti Park.

from the guys at B.A. Strategies.

That's not illegal for the parole board, just for the lobbyists.

"so we have a record of what it looked like before it was set on fire."

All right?

- Kevin McQueen. - Then McQueen said he made it all up.

You're so full of shit, Maggie.

Who do things get bad for?

and told me over and over that you didn't have feelings.

He became a radical imam and organized violence against the US.

There's nothing I can do for you.

Yeah, it may have been someone else.

I wasn't telling you to change your clothes.

No, stop!

I'm sure it was a by-the-book arrest.

You want to fuck around, huh?

and my company won't set precedent by paying ransom.

Nobody sings it like him, not even Elvis.

Right, that was...

The family of slain police officer Mark MacPhail was present,

Voice mail.

Will and the "News Night" staff are questioned by their lawyer about a story they've aired that's become a network crisis. An on-air remark by Will has him pulled from 9/11 anniversary coverage. Jim volunteers to cover for an embed reporter on the Romney campaign and Neal investigates the beginnings of Occupy Wall Street.

Lose.

I honestly don't mean to be rude, but you're the man with the clipboard,

Do you know how much we lose every year to piracy?

I thought, "Let the chips fall where they may."

of the now deposed strongman who ruled Libya for 42 years.

while celebrating the end of the Cold War?

Say "are investigating charges of attempted rape brought by..."

Will, your graphics aren't gonna be full screen.

- You got a minute? - Yeah.

- Is he all right? - No, he's an idiot.

- You look familiar. - I just started as an intern.

That's a good use of time.

but I'm gonna take your name off of it for the night.

But you're also staff and at some point, this conversation is inappropriate.

Ben puts down a stand-up at each of them.

It'll just be two weeks.

Cats and kittens, grab your mittens.

- You'll have to drive. - There's...

- Will, this is Jerry Dantana. - We've met.

- This morning. - What you got there, hmm?

It should be a full panel right after the A block,

No, he's out for a couple of weeks. Jim drove up last night to cover for him.

A presidential commission to get money out of politics.

Aren't they cheaper?

Ask him if the AUMF said we were at war with terrorists or the Pakistani civilians.

Will's not your problem. The panel's your problem.

when you went to break 41 seconds early.

Question?

Three-fourths couldn't name the first US president...

She's just waiting for it to happen,

the formation of a presidential commission

But they're gonna cover the drum circles

but until then, frankly, I just don't trust you

because she, too, has a job.

She doesn't like you.

Why?

"When I say, 'I love you,' you say, 'You better."' That person's just mean.

The Pentagon Papers, and we were the only ones who had it.