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Spotlight · 2015 — Chapter 21 of 21 · 4'34" · C1

The Newsroom Finalizes the Story, Explained: stumbling around in the dark

The night before publication, the Church refuses even to hear the questions, and the paper turns that refusal into copy. Then the editor steps back to say why the work matters — "this kind of story is why we do this" — before the room confronts why it took so long.

What happens

Hours before the paper goes to press, the Church declines to comment, and a blunt refusal — that it does not even want to know the questions — becomes part of the story. The editor praises the reporting and says such stories are why the work matters, then reminds everyone to return focused on Monday.

MeetingsOffice chatExplainingConfrontingCoworkersC1fastamerican
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Listen for

get ahead of thisbefore the jumpshillstumbling around in the dark

00:00 / 04:34
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  69. ❝ MonologueBaron closes the night11 linesPractice page ↗
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Phrase of the scene

stumbling around in the dark

working without clear direction or information

马丁对团队说，人很容易忘记我们大部分时间都在 stumbling around in the dark，以此安慰大家别为过去的疏忽过度自责。

For months the researchers were stumbling around in the dark.

Also in this scene

  • get ahead of this

    to act before a situation gets out of control

  • before the jump

    before the point where a story continues on another page

  • shill

    someone who promotes another party for money or favor

  • why we do this

    the reason and purpose behind our work

Everything marked in this scene

45 notes across 82 lines

Phrase · B2go to pressLarry, we're going to press in six hours.
Phrase · B1a quote from someoneDonna Morrisey said she'd called us with a quote from Law hours ago.
Phrase · B2get ahead of something

to act before a situation gets out of control

This is ridiculous. You'd think they'd wanna get ahead of this.
Phrase · B2be an idiot not to do somethingI mean, they'd be idiots not to.
Grammar · B2they'd be idiots not to

would be ... not to

I mean, they'd be idiots not to.
Phrase · B1see someone's faceI would love to see their faces when they read this thing then.
Phrase · B1if you have a minuteYeah, I just had a few questions if you have a minute.
Phrase · B2turn someone downAnything? Law just turned us down.
Soundturned us down

liaison

Anything? Law just turned us down.
Slang · B2Jesus ChristJesus Christ.
Phrase · B1get off the phoneI just got off the phone with Donna Morrisey.
Phrase · B2that ought to do itWell, that oughta do it.
Soundthat oughta do it

flap

Well, that oughta do it.
Phrase · B1have no interest in something"The Church had no interest" "in knowing what the Globe's questions would be."
Phrase · B2work something inWork it in somewhere before the jump. Anything else?
Phrase · C1before the jump

before the point where a story continues on another page

Work it in somewhere before the jump. Anything else?
Phrase · B1see for oneselfUh, Matt wants to put the letters online, so the readers can see for themselves.
Phrase · B2a tip lineWe also put the Spotlight tip line at the end of the story so people can call in.
Phrase · B1in case something happensMatt and I can go in in the morning in case we get any calls.
Phrase · B2be tied upAfter we ran the Porter case, the message centers were tied up for weeks.
Slang · A2'emLots of 'em.
Phrase · B2how are we coming on somethingUh, how are we coming on the folo story?
Phrase · B2nail something downWell, we've nailed down multiple stories
Phrase · B1ready to goAnd with the confirmation from Robby's source, we're ready to go.
Phrase · B2that something of yoursUh, Robby, that source of yours, is it something we could revisit?
Phrase · C1a shill for someoneHe's a shill for the Church.
Slang · C1shillHe's a shill for the Church.
Phrase · B1know and do nothingHe knew and did nothing.
Phrase · B1what about someoneWhat about us?
Phrase · B2what is that supposed to meanWhat's that supposed to mean?
Phrase · B2have all the piecesWe had all the pieces. (CLEARS THROAT)
Phrase · B2the scope of somethingSo what? We couldn't see the scope of this. No one could.
Phrase · B2bury a storyWe buried the story in Metro. No folo.
Soundburied the story

weak form

We buried the story in Metro. No folo.
Phrase · B1take overI'd just taken over. I don't remember it at all.
Phrase · B2stumble around in the dark

working without clear direction or information

Sometimes it's easy to forget that we spend most of our time stumbling around in the dark.
Grammar · B2it's easy to forget that we spend most of our time stumbling around in the dark

extraposition with it

Sometimes it's easy to forget that we spend most of our time stumbling around in the dark.
Phrase · C1a fair share of blameSuddenly a light gets turned on, and there's a fair share of blame to go around.
Phrase · B2can't speak to somethingI can't speak to what happened before I arrived,
Phrase · B1why we do this

the reason and purpose behind our work

For me, this kind of story is why we do this.
Soundwhy we do this

liaison

For me, this kind of story is why we do this.
Phrase · B2having said thatHaving said that, Cardinal Law and the Catholic community are gonna have a very strong response to this.
Grammar · B2Having said that

participial concession

Having said that, Cardinal Law and the Catholic community are gonna have a very strong response to this.
Phrase · B1someone has earned ityou've earned it.
Phrase · B1get a call from someoneI, uh, just got a call from the Cardinal.

The Newsroom Finalizes the Story, explained

What's really going on

The chapter is a newsroom at the edge of publishing, and its real subject is accountability — including the paper's own. The Church's refusal is turned into a weapon: if it will not even learn "what the questions are," the refusal itself is quotable, and the team knows that "that oughta do it." The mood then tightens when someone asks the question aimed inward: "What about us?" and then, "Why didn't we get it sooner?" The editor answers with the speech about stumbling in the dark and a light suddenly turning on, arguing that a story like this "is why we do this," while still noting the blame to go around. The scene ends with the paper admitting it once "buried the story in Metro," which keeps the praise from sounding like absolution.

Theme

DutyThe editor frames the reporting as the reason the job exists, even as the room questions its own delay.
GuiltThe team turns its scrutiny inward, asking why it did not act sooner.

Listen for

  • turned us down — liaison
  • that oughta do it — flap
  • buried the story — weak form
  • why we do this — liaison
This is ridiculous. You'd think they'd wanna get ahead of this.

Frustration that the Church will not even try to control the story, which makes its silence easier to print.

Sometimes it's easy to forget that we spend most of our time stumbling around in the dark.

The editor's defense of the paper: reporters rarely see the whole picture while they are in it.

Suddenly a light gets turned on, and there's a fair share of blame to go around.

His second beat: once the truth is visible, responsibility has to be shared, including by the paper.

For me, this kind of story is why we do this.

A plain statement of purpose, placed right before the room's most uncomfortable question.

Questions about this scene

Why does the paper quote the Church's refusal?

Because the refusal is revealing: Morrisey says the Church does not even want to know the questions, and that line becomes part of the article.

What does the editor say about the reporting?

He calls it excellent work with real impact, and says that this kind of story is why they do the job, while noting the Church will respond strongly.

Why does the team start blaming itself?

Someone points out they had the pieces — Saviano, Barrett, Geoghan, and the directories — and asks why they did not get the story sooner.

What did Robby admit?

He admits that when the earlier story ran, he was running Metro, that the paper buried it, and that he does not remember it at all.

What is 'before the jump'?

It is a print term for the part of an article before it continues on an inside page; the editor wants the quote placed somewhere earlier.

Spotlight · 21 chapters

All chapters →
Chapter 1take a hard look atBaron Meets Robinson for a DrinkChapter 2file a motionMarty Baron's First News MeetingChapter 3have something on someoneLawyers Break Down the Geoghan CaseChapter 4think in centuriesRezendes Meets GarabedianChapter 5stand aloneMarty Baron Meets Cardinal LawChapter 6preyed uponPhil Saviano Tells His StoryChapter 7the beginning of it allReporters Interview Abuse SurvivorsChapter 8out of circulationPressuring Macleish on SettlementsChapter 9it takes a villageRezendes Meets the InformantChapter 10Good GermansSipe's Six Percent EstimateChapter 11off the estimateThe Team Counts 87 PriestsChapter 12cottage industryRobby Confronts MacleishChapter 13from the top downThe Team Goes After the SystemChapter 14sledding uphillSpringfield Hearing on Sealed RecordsChapter 15off the recordGarabedian Reveals the Sealed DocumentsChapter 16get on the same pageReporters Confront Boston CollegeChapter 17broke ranksRobby Refuses to Rush the StoryChapter 18a few bad applesPete Pressures Robby Over DrinksChapter 19on a clockRobby Gets Six Weeks to PublishChapter 20lay something on someoneRobby Confronts His Old FriendWatching · Chapter 21stumbling around in the darkThe Newsroom Finalizes the Story
That's all 21 chapters of this film