By Published: April 28, 2021

图片说明:科罗拉多大学博尔德新闻团主任查克·普伦基特在校园里. 纪录片《博彩app推荐》讲述了普伦基特和其他人为拯救当地新闻业所做的努力.   Credit: CU Boulder

科罗拉多州的电影制作人布莱恩·马龙正在完成他的纪录片的最后编辑,这部纪录片讲述了正在消亡的当地新闻业, on January 6, 2021年,他打开电视,难以置信地看着一群愤怒的暴徒袭击了美国.S. Capitol.

在抗议者攀爬墙壁和打破窗户的镜头中, 有一张图片给他的印象尤其深刻:人群拆毁并踩踏新闻摄像机.

It was, he says, a lightbulb moment.

How to watch

On Rocky Mountain PBS: 7 p.m. Thursday

On other PBS affiliates: In June

Online: Streaming through May at RMPBS

More information: newsmattersfilm.com

“把所有这些人带到国会大厦,参与这场历史上暴力行为的是错误信息,” said Malone, who returned to the editing bay that day to reframe the film. “我在电影中一直在谈论的一切——报纸和可信信息的丧失以及危险的后果——都与正在发生的事情直接相关.”

这段令人不寒而栗的四分钟录像现在标志着 News Matters, which debuts this week on Rocky Mountain PBS.

With several scenes shot on campus, 故事围绕着科罗拉多大学博尔德新闻总队主任查克·普伦基特和一群科罗拉多记者的努力展开,他们抵制了以利润为导向的对冲基金,这些对冲基金挤压了美国报业的生命.S. newsrooms.

Since 2004, more than 2,000 newspapers have been shuttered. Those that remain, 包括普伦基特的前雇主《博彩app推荐》(编辑部员工从300人缩减到约60人),已经被削减到只剩骨头.

The film elucidates how it happened, makes the case for why they should be saved, 并为新兴的另类商业模式带来了希望.

“There is nothing like a big, 强大的地方新闻编辑室监视腐败并追究政府的责任,” says Plunkett, who joined CU Boulder in the Fall of 2018, 担任媒体传播与信息博彩app推荐系学生顶点项目的主任. “When newspapers die, so does democracy.”

The Denver Rebellion

2018年4月,马龙第一次见到普伦基特是在市中心前丹佛邮报大楼外的一次抗议活动中.

Days earlier, on April 6, 2018, Plunkett, then editorial editor at the Post, 当时,他牵头发表了一份长达6页的社论,严厉指责总部位于纽约的对冲基金奥尔登全球资本集团(Alden Global capital), the Post’s owner, 因为他让普利策奖得主《博彩app推荐》只剩一个骨架.

标题是:“新闻重要:科罗拉多州应该要求拥有它应得的报纸。. 它质疑为什么一家利润丰厚的公司会要求大幅裁员,并要求奥尔登重新考虑其商业战略,或者将公司出售给关心新闻业的人.

Denver Post protesters

Denver Post employees stage a protest in 2018. Credit: Brian Malone

在其中一行中,普伦基特将该报的所有者称为“秃鹫资本家”.”

奥尔登指示普伦基特不要再写有关这家公司的文章. 他辞职以示抗议,几名长期供职于《博彩app推荐》的记者紧随其后.

After he cleaned out his desk, 作为一名客观的记者,他发现自己处于一种前所未有的境地. 他参加了外面的抗议活动,并举着一块牌子,上面写着“高质量的新闻胜过企业贪婪”.”

From that moment, now known as “The Denver Rebellion” 普伦基特已成为拯救地方新闻的全国性斗争的象征.

“事实上,查克愿意采取如此大胆的行动——写一篇专栏文章,反对他自己的出版社老板对他们的指责,” said Malone, who was shooting footage of the rally that day. “that was a pretty great hook to build a film around.”

Three years in the making, News Matters 对十多位记者和新闻行业分析师的采访, 包括前邮报老板迪恩·辛格尔顿和传奇新闻记者马蒂·巴伦, who retired from the Washington Post in February.

奥尔登全球资本(Alden Global Capital)的代表没有回应他的采访请求.

A sunny outlook?

也许最有希望的场景是《博彩app推荐》的创始人, launched in 2018 by a group of former Post reporters.

“It is not journalism that is broken. It is the business model that is broken,前《博彩平台推荐》编辑和《博彩app推荐》高级编辑达纳·科菲尔德在影片中说道. “也许博彩平台推荐可以找到一种不同的方式来经营新闻业.”

其他场景显示,科罗拉多大学新闻系的学生在教室里,普伦基特站在前面. 

普伦基特说:“这些学生正积极努力,希望成为解决方案的一部分。. “And the public – they want us to succeed. We just have to figure out how to do right by them.”

Colorado Sun reporters plan the next edition

Employee owners of the Colorado Sun plan the next edition. Credit: Brian Malone

影片上映的一周,总部位于纽约的对冲基金奥尔登全球资本(Alden Global Capital)再次成为新闻焦点, this time bidding to buy Tribune, 芝加哥论坛报和其他几家大市场日报的出版商.

这个消息让马龙很困扰,他担心当地的新闻很快就会遭受另一次毁灭性的打击.

He hopes his film drives home what that could really mean.

“我希望人们在离开时能更好地理解信任的重要性, vetted journalism,” he said. “And how dangerous our country can get without it.”

This article is featured in the Spring 2021 digital issue of CMCI Now magazine    See more stories from CMCI Now