Plot Synopsis

Produced and directed by filmmaker Liz Garbus, THE FOURTH ESTATE is a documentary series that follows the inner workings of The New York Times, revealing the challenges, triumphs and pitfalls of covering a president who has declared the majority of the nation's major news outlets "the enemy of the people." The series opens as Donald J. Trump takes the oath of office, The New York Times' New York and Washington bureaus prepare to cover an administration unlike any other. The role that Russia played in the 2016 election quickly emerges as a storyline that will continue to unfold, consuming a troop of investigative journalists for the year to come. In this fiercely competitive environment, The Times and The Washington Post vie for scoops while overtaxed journalists work to develop sources inside a volatile administration. Tension boils over when the President calls the media "the enemy of the people." Remarkably, FBI director James Comey announces an active federal investigation into ties between the Trump campaign and Russia during the 2016 election. Meanwhile, the paper faces economic challenges as it continues to adapt to a digital world. In a time when the news never stops, The Times' reporters scramble to break the stories vital to the future of our democracy before the pace and the scrutiny breaks them. Then, shortly after FBI director James Comey is fired by President Trump, The New York Times journalist Michael Schmidt is on to a huge scoop with ongoing reverberations, regarding Comey's memos about his meetings with Trump. The appointment of a special counsel marks an important new turn in what has already been an historic year. Things are made more dire when The Times reveals details of a secret meeting between members of the Trump campaign team and a Russian lawyer with ties to the Kremlin. And there is heavy turnover at the White House, covered by White House correspondent Maggie Haberman. But even as The Times drives this shocking flow of new information, it continues to squarely address its own inner challenges. Advertising dollars are shrinking. Digital is replacing print, podcasts are now synonymous with the paper, and Twitter is how news breaks first. The executive editor must make difficult changes that break with tradition. Can The New York Times adapt to a digital future without losing something vital in the process?

One month before its official series premiere on Showtime, THE FOURTH ESTATE debuted at the prestigious Tribeca Film Festival, receiving the distinction of being selected as the Festival's closing night film. Following its screening on Saturday, April 28, Tribeca Film Festival will host a panel discussion with some of the subjects of the documentary including The New York Times executive editor Dean Baquet, Washington bureau chief Elisabeth Bumiller, White House correspondent Maggie Haberman, Washington investigative correspondent Mark Mazzetti and Garbus.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On Sunday, June 17, 2018 at 8pm ET/PT, Showtime premiered "Matters of Fact," the finale of THE FOURTH ESTATE. The New York Times reporters learn that the President's former national security adviser, Michael T. Flynn, has pled guilty to lying to the FBI, bringing the Russia investigation closer to Trump's inner circle. As the paper leads the reporting on workplace sexual harassment, allegations of past misconduct by one reporter in the bureau bring the story home. And for all the attacks on the free press over the course of Trump's first year in office, the paper is rewarded for what it does best: good reporting.