The Newsroom (2012–2014): Season 2, Episode 5 - News Night with Will McAvoy - full transcript

People are mad at him, Charlie.

There are boycotts
and protesters,

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

The point is I'm not
who I used to be right now.

Did you give away
an interview with Romney?

You know exactly how fucked up
it is that you gave it away.

And that you gave it to
a girl that you like.

Your father was an abusive alcoholic?
He hit you?

Look, he didn't hit anybody
once I was old enough to hit him back.

What do we do now?

A preposterous stroke of luck
has to occur.



A guy down at OWS
was telling a campfire story

about working for an NGO.

He wrote a report that said US troops
were using chemical weapons.

- What happened to her in Africa?
- Will. She went out on a story.

It got real very fast and
she came back a little messed up.

She'd better get un-messed up
in a hurry.

If what happened to her
happened to you,

You would sit in the middle of a room
and cry forever.

- Maggie?
- You're back.

15 seconds to VTR.

- Stand by, roll-in.
- Standing. Ready crane.

- The 911 call from Zimmerman.
- Ready 1.

- I'm talking to graphics.
- All cameras stand by.

- Billy, you all set?
- What if the answer was no?



I wouldn't be able to help you.

Three, two...
Roll-in.

10 seconds.

In four, three, two...

Good evening.
I'm Will McAvoy.

And this is News Night.

New developments in Sanford,
Florida,

in the investigation into
the shooting death of Trayvon Martin.

Jurors have reached a verdict today
in the case of Dharun Ravi,

a Rutgers student accused of spying on
his roommate with a web-cam.

And we'll return
to the campaign trail,

but we start with news
from the Pentagon.

Today, for the first time,

the military identified the soldier...

- Breaking.
- What is it?

- Syria.
- ...Staff Sergeant Robert Bales,

a 38-year-old
father of two.

But the released
Sergeant Bales...

Two bombs have
exploded in Damascus.

They were detonated simultaneously
near government buildings.

Right now authorities
are confirming 16 dead

and 45 injured,
but those numbers are expected to rise.

- Rebels?
- Yeah.

- Do you know that or are you guessing?
- I'm guessing.

Buy the footage and set up a window.
We'll slide Tyler Clementi.

We go now to Bethany Lee
at the Pentagon.

The State Department.
Excuse me, the Pentagon. Bethany.

Will? I mean, Will.
Sorry, Will.

My dad called my cell
during the roll-in.

Like he fucking doesn't know
where I'm at at 8:00.

And, Mac, switch me,
God damn it.

- I don't want to say this shit in front of the control room.
- Switch him.

...last Sunday
walked into two nearby villages

and there shot or stabbed
16 people,

nine of them children.

What kind of military record
did Sergeant Bales have?

According to his lawyer,
he had an exemplary military record.

I'm not gonna fire you.

She just told you
that it's not her.

And I just told her
that I'm not gonna fire her--

- She's got a contract. What are you talking about?
- I'm glad you brought that up.

- "The Anchor shall not commit any act..."
- It was Photoshopped.

It's her head
on another woman's body.

"...into public disrepute,
contempt, scandal, or ridicule,

which might tend to reflect
unfavorably on the network..."

She doesn't need to hear
her morals clause!

"...any sponsor of the program,
or any stations broadcasting the program."

Congratulations,
you checked all the boxes.

- Are you deaf?
- Charlie.

She just told you it's not her body,
Reese.

Then she needs to stop wearing
that fucking necklace, Charlie.

It's the same one
she's wearing in the pictures.

The images have been
scrutinized by not one,

but three graphic experts
who have reached identical conclusions.

Skin coloring is a match.
The shadows are a match.

Is there a blending issue?
No.

The hue is a match.
Pixelation is consistent throughout.

Resolution is consistent
throughout.

- The size of the luma key--
- Stop. It's me.

I lied.
I'm sorry.

Yeah.

Yeah?

Hang on.

Excuse me for a second.

- He's here?
- He's in the lobby.

There are people here.

Go down there and take him
somewhere until I say come up.

- You sure?
- Yeah, just take him somewhere.

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

pointing a camera
through a peephole.

- You posed for these.
- So what?

- I understand.
- I didn't hear you.

I understand.
I was seeing a man over Christmas--

- You don't have to explain.
- I can't tell you how much I wish that were true.

But she has to explain enough for me
to be satisfied there aren't more of these out there.

There are more.

Colonel, yesterday
President Karzai went to visit

the families of the victims
of Sergeant Bales' attack.

- Yes.
- And today he spoke with President Obama...

The Syria feed is coming in.

Bars and tone are
a couple seconds away.

Put it up on a monitor
and dij it straight into the system.

- Copy that.
...speaking mainly to a domestic audience.

I'm sorry, Colonel,
I'm not clear how Karzai's remarks

could have been intended
for a domestic audience

when he was speaking on a secure phone
to the President of the United States.

- Syria's up. Right there.
- A phone call that included

senior members of both administrations,
Will.

Can you write some copy
and keep it under 90 seconds?

I'll start to triage
the bottom of the show.

- Are you doing anything?
- Yeah.

- Remind me.
- I'm waiting for an e-mail alert

- from the Seminole County Sheriff's Department.
- Right.

- You sure?
- I just forgot, Maggie.

- Tess.
- Yeah?

I just sent you bullets
on the two bombs in Damascus.

We need to keep it
under 90 seconds.

You know the body counts
are all over the place.

Some are saying it's 15 and some are saying it's 100.
You want to be that fuzzy?

Write it,
hope that the numbers firm up

in the next 45 minutes,
and hope it's closer to 15.

- Jim.
- Yeah?

We've got a situation.
There's a Syrian woman on the phone with me right now.

She's calling from
the W Hotel in Midtown.

She says her husband's
trapped underneath.

- One of the buildings?
- Yeah.

My name is Jim Harper, ma'am.

- Are you the one in charge?
- I am. Can you tell me what's happening?

My husband is alive
and trapped under the concrete.

All right.
I understand.

No one's try to rescue anyone.
He's alive.

When was the last time you spoke
with your husband, Mrs. Kouri?

Right now. He's on the phone.
He's calling me from under.

- He's on the phone with you?
- No one is coming to rescue anyone.

Can you forward
that call to me?

- Mrs. Kouri.
- Yes?

Can you forward
that call to me?

You need to switch back to your husband's call,
go to your menu--

- Yes.
- Hello?

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

- Yes, I'm here, thank God.
- Sir, this is--

This is Jim Harper
at Atlantis Cable News,

an American news organization.

Your wife connected us.
Tell me about your condition.

My leg is crushed
and I'm trapped.

And that's inflamed
President Karzai's desire

to limit NATO troops
to major bases.

And he's also accused American officials,
President Karzai has,

of not cooperating with a delegation
he'd sent to investigate the killings...

A woman's on the phone
from the W.

She connected me to her husband,
who she says

is trapped under there,
who I've just spoken to.

They believe if it gets international coverage,
Assad will hurry up.

- The wife's at the W?
- Yeah.

- What did the husband say?
- He said, "Thank God."

You want to let me
do some good?

Just be right.

Colonel Stanley Owlen,
spokesman for CENTCOM in Afghanistan.

- Thank you for joining us.
- Pleasure.

We'll keep following this story

as the case of
Sergeant Bales continues.

This is News Night.
We'll be back right after this.

- Out.
- 2:30 back.

- What did your dad say?
- It wasn't my dad.

It was the guy who called the ambulance.
He was using my dad's phone.

- What happened?
- I don't know, it sounds like he collapsed.

Yes, please,
in Lincoln, the number

for the St. Elizabeth
Regional Medical Center.

- And if you could connect me, that would be--
- Jesus.

Yeah, one of the hands
took his phone and called me.

I was the emergency contact.
1,500 miles away.

Good evening.
I'm looking for John McAvoy.

He was brought into ER about--
He should have just been brought in.

- Thank you.
- What do you think happened?

7:00 Central Time?
I think he was helping to bring in the cows,

which you're not supposed
to do when you're 150 years--

Yes, I'm calling
about John McAvoy.

He was brought in a few minutes ago.
This is his son Will.

- What do you need?
- I just need to ask him about something

- someone posted on Twitter.
- Can it wait?

- Yeah.
- Neal, hang on.

You think if I called
back after 9:00--

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

I might be able
to speak to him?

I appreciate it.
Thanks.

It's all right.
They think he may have had a mild heart attack.

He's responding
to a clot dissolving agent

and they got him in cardio
running some tests.

Little mo' cardio.
It's fine.

- What do you want to do?
- Whatever's next in the rundown.

- What do you got, Neal?
- Some bullshit on--

- 60 seconds.
- 60 seconds. Some bullshit on Twitter.

- What did I do?
- I'll take care of it.

What?!

@PepperBurke says--
I guess maybe

you were cold to her
in a restaurant at lunch.

I have absolutely no idea
who @PepperBurke is.

- She's a writer for--
- I don't care.

- Is this an emergency?
- No.

Then I don't care.
Clear the studio.

Don't wait for the show
to come down to call him.

The race for the Republican
presidential nomination...

He consults for AIG

and we'd been seeing
each other about six weeks.

And he got a suite at the Mandarin Oriental
for Christmas Eve.

- I bought him a camera-- A nice--
- All right.

A camera,
and we'd been drinking

and he wanted me to pose and,
you know, I did.

For fun.
Just for us.

Last night I broke up with him.

Have you heard of this
website RevengePorn?

I have now.

Why can't she file for injunctive relief
and get the pictures down?

The pictures are everywhere.
They have their own Facebook page.

- Then she sues for defamation.
- She posed for the pictures.

- Copyright.
- It was his camera.

She gave it to him.
He owns the pictures

and it doesn't look to me like
she was doing anything against her will.

I wasn't.

- Are you on TV tonight?
- Yeah, in about two hours.

You're trending number one,
Sloan.

What do you want to do?

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

- Neal.
- Yeah?

Can you unblock
a number for me?

- You can do it.
- How?

By listening when I
taught you how to do it.

Transfer the call to my line.

Alim, are you still with me?
Samirah?

- Yes.
- I'm still here.

We're working with authorities,
so hang in there and breathe.

- All right.
- Okay.

He talked up
the American auto industry,

praised the president's
convictions,

and repeatedly criticized
the Republican candidates by name,

accusing them of being out
to protect the privileged.

Our philosophy,

ours is one that values
the workers

and the success of a business.

It values the middle class
and the success of our economy.

Simply stated, we're about
promoting the private sector.

Jim, it's in.

They're about protecting
the privileged sector.

- Download it.
- I'm sorry?

- Download it.
- Download what?

- The 911 tapes.
- What does download mean?

- Maggie.
- It's downloading.

How long is the tape?

Four minutes and seven seconds.

How long does
that take to download?

It really depends.

All I want in the world
is for you

to be standing
over my shoulder for the next 99%.

You're in luck.

- Neal.
- Yeah?

Shit. I thought
he was in a package.

I'm in the shot.
All right, just be cool.

- Okay, you first.
- Can you-- Shut up.

- Can you block the site?
- I already did.

- In the office?
- Yeah. Why, can you block it everywhere?

- No.
- I didn't know.

How could I block it
everywhere?

You said-- Never mind.

Did you know there's
an organization called

The Righteous Daughters
of Jihadi Excellence?

No.

What was that?

WorldNetDaily has
a reputable source

saying Simon Weingarden
may have once accepted a speaking fee

from The Righteous Daughters
of Jihadi Excellence.

You wouldn't have to pay me;
I'd give anything to speak at one of those meetings.

Keeping in mind
that WorldNetDaily

reported that Obama
murdered his gay lover--

No, he didn't murder him,
he had him murdered.

And it wasn't his gay lover,
it was his husband.

- So they got other facts wrong, too?
- Yeah.

Keeping that in mind,
what do you think

WorldNetDaily considers
a reputable source?

In this case? Me.

I need to make a call.

While the president struck
a somewhat sarcastic tone,

the vice president
pulled no punches,

perhaps offering
a preview of the--

Philip, it's Don Keefer.

I just read a story on WND

blind quoting a source
who says Weingarden spoke

to The Righteous Daughters
of Jihadi Excellence,

and that group sounded
oddly familiar to me.

Could you call me back
at the office?

And if you call between 10:00 and 11:00,
tell them I said

to put you through to the control room.
We gotta fix this.

- What happened?
- Jesus!

I'm sorry.
I'm down here.

It's all right.

What are you doing?

Just hanging out.
Grant's in my office. Our office.

You shouldn't be sharing
an office anymore.

I don't mind.

I like Grant
and he's usually in DC.

Brings his dog in sometimes.

Basset hound.
Always looks very puzzled.

Just confounded.

But working on it, you know?

Just everybody slow down

and let me catch up
'cause I'm down here.

There was no way
to see this coming.

He was a really nice guy.

Totally trusted him.

It's all right.

...allowed to vote
in partisan primaries,

but not in presidential
elections.

It's because everyone's downloading
at the same time.

Yeah.

Hey, I read Hallie's
column yesterday.

- On Sandra Fluke?
- That chick can write.

I'll tell her you said so.

She knows who I am?

Sure. Yeah.

Why wouldn't she?

I don't know.

She does.

- How did it come up?
- You?

I'm just curious.

I don't know.
I'm sure I mentioned you

when I was on the bus with her.
Talked about everybody.

Well, tell her
she's been on fire lately.

It's not hard to light her on fire
with Sandra Fluke.

- She ain't the only one.
- Yeah.

What do you mean?

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

- Really?
- Just a little? Little bit?

No.

A little of the ol',
"Hey, how do you do?"

A little,
"Hey, how's your uncle?"

Texas two-step,
refried beans, nothin'?

You think anyone else
is getting it faster?

Is everyone downloading it
at the same speed

or is CNN on the air
with it already?

Gary, is anyone up yet
with the 911 tape?

No.

Anyway, I was glad
for Hallie's piece about Sandra Fluke.

And the two pieces that came before that
about Sandra Fluke.

And I'm looking forward to her upcoming series
"White Men, I Think I Hate Them."

She writes about
women's issues.

- Sexism.
- It's in the news right now.

You say that
like we can't help it.

What can I tell you?
I hit send, it's in the news.

Would you prefer
nobody wrote about it?

No, but can I show you
something?

I didn't read it on her blog.

It was picked up
by The Huffington Post.

She was very happy about that.

And look,
to get to Hallie's piece

about the epidemic of sexism,

you have to scroll past
two stories on side boobs,

"Six Things You Never
Should Say To a Woman With Big Boobs,"

"Alicia Keys' Nip Slip,"
"Britney's Nip Slip," "This Week In Nip Slips,"

and "Scarlett Johansson's
Busty Red Carpet Look a Distraction."

A distraction from what,
they never say.

I think they were busy
looking for sexism.

Can you go back
to the download?

17%.

Polls close
at 8:00 P.M. Eastern

and our full coverage begins
at 5:00 here on ACN.

We'll be back after this.

- We're out.
- Three minutes back.

Yeah, we're clear.

You wanted me?

What's the Twitter problem
you started to talk to me about?

It seemed like Mac
really didn't want me to bother you with it.

She doesn't get
to make that decision.

So please just tell me
before she walks in here.

You ran into a woman in a restaurant at lunch,
Pepper Burke.

- I don't know who that is.
- She writes for the Post.

- What did I do?
- It sounds like you didn't recognize her.

- I'm sure that's true.
- "@WillMcAvoy blew me off at Smith&Wol." Steak?

- Have you got the next packet?
- I didn't blow her off.

"I was carrying two coffees.

Must have thought
I was a waitress.

He's not who he thinks he is,
but exactly who we think he is."

Neal, a woman walked up to me

as I was leaving
and said hello.

And I said hello.
What in the fuck?!

- What you got, Sampat?
- Nothing.

- A woman on Twitter--
- God damn it.

Can we please settle
who my boss is?

- It's me. It's him.
- It's me. It's me.

A woman says I snubbed her
in a restaurant.

Should we try to get that
into the D block?

- How many followers does she have?
- It doesn't matter.

- She's got a few.
- And retweets?

- Sure, and it was also picked up by BuzzFeed.
- Come on!

It should be obvious to you by now
that fundamentally small people

are going to try to raise their profile
by standing on your neck.

Could we have a second?

- Sure, yeah. But then I need you.
- I'll be right there.

- In the next break, we're composing a response.
- Neal.

I don't get paid any extra
when this happens,

and it happens all the time
and it's always me.

One minute.

I was polite to her.
I swear to God.

Turn off your mic pack.

Nothing bad is gonna happen
if you're kind to him right now.

On the other hand,
if you make the other choice and you're wrong,

you will never
be able to undo it.

That's a scientific fact.

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

- I'm supposed to call back at 9:00.
- Call his phone.

- He can't talk right now.
- Leave a message for him.

Just show him you called.
He'll freak.

- I'm in the middle of--
- In the next break.

He and I need to talk,
not just a message.

I know that,
but start with a message

so when it gets to the talk,
it doesn't start with, "Why didn't you call me?"

I'll do it in the next break.

Good.

I really do think
tonight is one of those nights

when you should just do
everything I tell you to do.

How exactly would that
be different from every other--

30 seconds.

You're like his drug dealer
on this stuff.

The right response
might not be a bad idea.

It's gonna keep going
for 24 hours.

She's gonna have to become a star
by doing something

- or sleeping with someone.
- I wanted you to see something.

- When Pepper Burke tweeted--
- I'm gonna kill you tonight.

No, this isn't that.
She used the hashtag News Night.

So I was looking at other tweets
with our hashtag

and this one was posted six minutes ago
from our hair and makeup room.

Are you kidding me?

I'll talk to him when I can.

I know this isn't your fault,
but I really do hate you anyway.

I don't care that it's irrational.
It is what it is.

Tonight I root
for your failure.

In three, two...

Today the Obama administration
reaffirmed its commitment

to a federal mandate
that women's health insurance plans...

Thank you.
Get in here.

Charlie Skinner at ACN,
I will not help you with your sleeper cell.

- Get in.
- How you doing?

You really think you should
be spotted coming to see me?

I'm a press liaison for the ONI.
Why do you treat me like a secret agent?

- 'Cause you're a fucking secret agent.
- No.

- You know you are.
- I am not.

- You're a ghost.
- I work in public affairs at Naval Intelligence.

You're a fucking spook
and you know it.

I don't know if you're
with us or Mossad.

- I'm not Mossad.
- I'm compromised now.

- You got anything to drink?
- Yeah.

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

it's about something stupid.

That's just hurtful.

Everybody else comes
and says please,

report where
the missile landed,

but not where it was launched.

And that makes sense to me.

With you,
it's please don't report

that we're building a computer center
in the mountains of Utah.

That's not a stupid ask.

What do you care if people
know that the Navy's

building a computer center
outside Provo?

- They might make fun of us.
- Why?

It's hot there in the summer
and computers get hot

and people say we're stupid,
don't know what we're doing.

When the truth is the Navy has an excellent
track record of knowing what it's doing.

We saw the potential
in Mav and Goose

and we sent them to Miramar,
which I don't think the Air Force would have done.

And you've got the Roswell
crowd that's gonna say

it's a rec center
for Mormon aliens.

- Is it?
- I've already said too much.

You've got four 25,000-square-foot rooms
full of servers,

1.7 million gallons
of coolant a day,

and you want to hold
yottabytes of data.

I do not have
the first earthly idea

what a yottabyte of data is,
but the kids downstairs

tell me it's equal to 500
quintillion pages of text.

Did not know
what a quintillion was,

so I found out and it's a lot.

Have our enemies produced

a yottabyte's worth of text?

Has the human race?

Still, we'd rather not add

one more high-value target
to anyone's book.

This may sound mean to say,

but if North Korea
is ranking targets,

I wouldn't mind
if the mountains of Utah

took the place of,
for instance, my house.

The world's not gonna
be ended by a bomb.

It's gonna be
a disgruntled kid.

He's gonna hack into the grid,
open dams, canals, flood towns,

change pipeline pressures
to key oil and gas centers,

causing hellacious explosions
in populated areas.

How's Nancy?

She's finishing up
a book on Jackson.

And Sophie?

She's in Amherst.

- What's she majoring in?
- Philosophy.

What do you do
with a philosophy degree?

It takes all the energy I have
not to ask that question at Thanksgiving.

I don't give a shit
about the computers in Utah.

Report whatever you want.

If you don't care,
what are you doing here?

You've got a producer
at your DC bureau

named Jerry Dantana.

Yeah.

Why has he been spending
the last seven months

asking people about
a black op called Genoa?

I'm not here
for something stupid.

A lion's walking
through the woods

and he comes up to a zebra

and the lion says,
"You know something, zebra?

You are a ridiculous
looking animal.

You're half white, half black,
half horse, half donkey.

Look at me.
I'm rough, I'm tough,

I'm the king
of the jungle."

Zebra just shrugs and moves on.

Lion comes to a giraffe
and the lion says,

"You know something, giraffe?

You are a ridiculous
looking animal.

You've got a long neck
and little horns.

Look at me.
I'm rough, I'm tough,

I'm the king
of the jungle."

Lion comes to a frog and says,

"You know something, frog?

You are a ridiculous
looking animal.

You're green and slimy."

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

You got to get your show ready.

I'm all right.

At some point,
I'm gonna have to call my parents.

Do you have to?

My father keeps
a scrapbook on me.

He Googles me every morning.

He's gonna understand.

- He will.
- Not deep down.

No one will.

This is who I am now.

What happened?

You mean how did he--

- Why did I pose?
- Was it a bad breakup?

I didn't even know you were
going out with someone.

He was a very
well-respected analyst.

We met at a Forbes party.

No, I didn't think
it was a bad breakup.

He wasn't very upset about it.

But even if it had been,
like, this would be okay?

- No.
- What the fuck?

I know.

I am feeling
so intensely something

that I don't know what it is.

Rage.

You want me to scrap you
from the rundown?

- Yes.
- You're supposed to do a segment--

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

the guy is--
He's the Chancellor of the Exchequer.

You can't...

He should have Elliot.

Okay.

Excuse me.

I bought him the camera.

It was a good camera.

I asked a couple of our
freelance guys for help.

I miss still photography.

Though not so much lately.

Philip, it's Don Keefer again.

You've got to call me.
This is a problem.

Tomorrow morning,
everyone's gonna be sourcing

the WND story
that's sourcing you sourcing me.

I have no idea
if Simon Weingarden

would make a good
solicitor general or not,

or even if he's being
considered.

But he shouldn't have this
stapled to his resume

just because I'm dry.

Call me, please, at any of my numbers.
They'll put you through.

What was that?

Anyway...

You're feeling rage.

I'd love it if I was.

I'd give anything to feel rage.

It'd trump the humiliation
and I'd be able to get up.

I think I live here now.

What if I were able
to promise you

that humiliation
always turns into rage?

How long does
that conversion take?

How long is the evolution?

How long does it take to get
from the larva stage--

- I fully understand what you're asking.
- How long does it take?

I guess it depends.

Like with Germany,
it was 15 or 20 years.

- Forget it.
- But Wile E. Coyote,

you know, he...

He has a fast turnaround.

I want to die.

I know.

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

in the news
including this one...

As soon as you're done,
I'm gonna need it

so I can post
an unedited transcript.

Martin, Tess.

We're monitoring it.
Help is on the way.

You understand they want to
be able to raise awareness--

No, I understand.

I'll tell you
what column I'd write.

What's wrong with sluts?

I don't think that's her point.

It wasn't her point,
but it's mine.

Rush Limbaugh
called a woman a slut.

It's not hard for me
to get over that.

But now I have to ask
what's wrong with sluts?

That's a woman who has
a lot of casual sex with different guys.

Why isn't that good as long
as everybody's safe?

Because the country is divided
into people who like sex

and people who are
utterly creeped out by it.

I'm one of the sex people.

And I'm sure
we're in the majority

and I'm getting tired of having to
make a public bow to the minority

by pretending
I'm not really into sex.

You need to switch to vodka.

It's not as easy to smell

and you're wearing the same clothes
as you were yesterday.

Think I'm drunk right now?

Last night.
Most nights.

What I do when
I leave here is none--

I know.

Limbaugh is not
the interesting conversation.

He was wrong.

Sluts was the interesting
conversation.

We'll have it in five minutes.

Another five or six
to cut and render it.

I need to know how much time.

I'll find out.

- Gary.
- Yeah?

How long did it take you
to straighten out after Africa?

I wasn't holding the kid.

All right.

We live in a dangerous
time for freedom.

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

I'll grant you that it takes guts
to speak out about anything.

But does it take
something extra...

It's about five minutes away,
and then we'll have to cut it down from 4:07.

Okay.
Just 20 to 25 seconds will be cool.

If we can't get it right on time,
we can always slide it to 10:00.

- I want it for us.
- We may be squeezed.

- Then we're squeezed.
- All right. We'll have it.

...or Mr. Buchanan.

But Rush Limbaugh has
the most popular show on the radio

and Pat Buchanan won
the New Hampshire primary.

What does someone who wants to
speak up about conservative values

have to fear in terms
of consequences?

Will, I'm not even sure
why we're talking about this.

It's because you said
it's a dangerous time for freedom.

A time when it takes
guts to speak out

for conservative values,
and then I took it from there.

Pat Buchanan was fired
from MSNBC.

- Do you know why?
- I can take a guess.

Well, since you're on television,
I'd prefer you didn't.

It was absolutely
because of the book.

I guess you couldn't
help yourself.

You and I know
there's a chapter that's misunderstood.

Tess, I'll be back in a second.

- Give him a warning at 30 out.
- Copy.

People widely
misunderstood a chapter in Pat's book.

- The chapter--
- "The End of White America."

- Jesse?
- Yeah.

I'm Mac McHale, the producer.

That's such a news name.

"Well, you got moxie, kid.
And that's our lead.

Kill the lead that was there before
and get me a ham sandwich."

So let me ask you
a couple of things.

You're the head of the Rutgers
Gay-Straight Alliance?

- Yes.
- Did you know Tyler?

No.

Will's gonna ask you about
the reaction to all this on campus.

You don't have to feel like
you're speaking for everyone,

just your own experience.

Obviously I thought
what Dharun Ravi did was reprehensible.

He invaded Tyler's privacy
in the worst possible way

and then made it available
for everyone to see.

Do you think Dharun Ravi
is homophobic?

I have no idea.
I know he's an asshole.

You take the most intimate
moment of someone's life

- and use it for entertainment?
- Right.

Right.

A woman who works for the Post

is mad at Will
for a perceived snub

and she's been tweeting about it
and that's why someone here

was looking at
the News Night hashtag.

"Watch #Newsnight 8:00 P.M.

My TV debut.
Gonna make some waves.

♪Parentspleasedonthateme."

This was you, right?

Yeah.
Just spreading the word.

What kind of waves, Jesse?

Are you planning on
coming out on the show?

To my parents.

I'm sorry, you can't.

Why?

You just said you can't
take the most intimate moment

of someone's life
and use it for entertainment.

But I'm volunteering
to do that.

- I signed a release.
- You can't do it.

If I hadn't told you,
you wouldn't have known.

If you hadn't tweeted about it
and you hadn't told me,

I wouldn't have known,
but you did and I do.

What's wrong with it?
As long as I'm okay with it.

It's just not
that kind of show.

- We'll be back after this.
- What kind of show?

The kind where
that would happen.

We just went to commercial
and I'll be right back.

We have to talk about this,
okay?

You can't just pretend
I didn't say anything?

No.

She knew what she was doing
when she said you must have

thought she was a waitress.

- People are tweeting?
- Mostly women.

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

During the show?
I wish they'd wait until after.

- Or at least a commercial.
- What's going on here?

- She tweeted again.
- Yeah.

And Miles Deaken pulled
my pigtails in kindergarten.

- Could I...
- What was the second tweet?

"Another battle lost
in the war on women."

And also on that metaphor.
Did you call his phone?

- Yeah, there was no answer.
- You left a message?

- I called the hospital.
- You left a message for him?

- Yeah.
- Good.

It's gonna mean a lot to him.

- You didn't, did you?
- No.

- Come on, do it, now.
- It's not that simple.

- Yes, it is.
- After the show.

I'm saying in addition
you should call now,

his phone, and leave a message.
Start to turn this around.

I think I'm making a mistake

not having Neal write
something to this woman.

"It was a pleasure
meeting you at lunch.

I'm sorry you felt snubbed."

Yeah, but maybe
it should be longer.

What else do you want to say?

- I had to hurry back to the office.
- What else?

I don't think any woman
with a coffee cup is a waitress.

I don't think women
are only suited to be waitresses.

Are you sure you want to be
that insulting to waitresses?

- You're right.
- Will.

- Yeah?
- Forget about the fucking tweet!

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

And we haven't been getting
the bounces lately.

And there's injustice.

Living with that much injustice

from the person
who was supposed to represent--

He's the one who tells you
what the world is going to think of you.

And if he tells you you're bad--
That forever.

Not forever.
That's my point.

- 30 seconds.
- 30 seconds.

If you're thinking on the off chance
he might die tonight,

you can win the last frame
by sticking it to him--

- I'm not.
- Then why are you talking about justice?

- I don't know what to say.
- It's voice mail.

"Dad, it's Will.
I just heard--"

I'll call him
in the next break.

What was the third tweet?

The first was you blew her off

and she's a waitress
and you didn't respond to that.

And the second was the lost battle
and you didn't respond to that.

What was the third?

"You just lost a viewer."

She knows what she's doing.

Two large explosions,
believed to be car bombs,

have rocked the Syrian
capital of Damascus,

destroying two
government buildings,

killing at least 27
and injuring at least 97,

with authorities saying
those numbers are likely to go up.

The window's gonna be
pretty small

after we wait another
4:07 to listen to it.

We're gonna have to bump
something late in the show.

Yeah.

How long have you been
waiting to say something?

I don't know.

You have questions
about my--

About drinking and men?

- You want to warn me about something?
- No.

'Cause I'm single.
Is my performance at work suffering?

No.

You know what it's like
in my place with Lisa?

I have to come home after she comes home,
and that ain't easy.

You'd think I'd be
out of the penalty box.

Just get someplace
else to live.

No sweat.

It's been six months.

You're unpredictable and moody.

You're unpleasant and volatile
and begging for a fight.

Does anyone have a problem
with my performance at work?

No.

It's uploading to the network drive.

You work on it in the edit bay,
20 to 25 seconds.

I'll write the copy and build the segment.
We need it fast.

Jerry Dantana
was chasing a rumor here.

That's what
he's supposed to do.

I thought his profile
was low enough

that he wouldn't
set off any buzzers.

What's the rumor?

I can't tell you that.

Don't you want me
to wave you off?

I doubt you'd know about this.

- Really?
- I can't tell you what it is.

You're irritating people whose help
you're gonna need on other things.

I don't know what to say.
He wasn't doing anything out of line.

And you'd follow up on this,
too.

Something to do
with chemical weapons?

- I can't tell you.
- But it is, right?

- Shep.
- It's a fucking serious allegation, Charlie.

Nobody's making the allegation.

That's a war crime.

I mean, can you imagine?

People would go away
for a long time.

There'd be riots
in the Middle East.

There'd be riots here at home.

Our allies would be in a fix

and America would
lose any claim

to moral authority
around the world.

If that's the story
you're chasing.

I can't tell you
what the story is.

Let me ask you this.

If your son were a Marine
like you were

and he was taken and we knew
he was a couple hours away

from being sold for the purpose of
a public beheading,

would you have a problem
with a MARSOC unit

conducting an extraction
using any means necessary?

Your hypothetical
bears a remarkable resemblance

to the rumor
we've been chasing.

Does it?

Dr. Worth,
does a US President

- have any control over gas prices?
- Yes, Will.

These assholes,
they always get away.

When you come
to the clubhouse...

Back it up
to "these assholes."

- Just keep him talking.
- Yeah.

Ask him where he's from,
what does he do,

- why is his wife in New York?
- Mr. Kouri...

You say it's on the
left-hand side from the clubhouse?

No, you go in
straight through the entrance

and then you make a left--
You go straight in.

Don't turn and make a left.
Shit, he's running.

We have more oil and gas
in the shale

of North Dakota and California
and a few other states

than in all of Saudi Arabia.

But the price is set globally.

If Australia is willing
to pay Chevron $100 a barrel

and we aren't,
Chevron's gonna sell it to Australia.

- He's running?
- Which way is he running?

- Down towards...
- Do we need that?

We've got less
than five minutes.

"This week, as national
attention has increased,

the Sanford Police Department's
handling of the investigation

has come under
intense pressure to release..."

Newt Gingrich
is smart enough to know

that one of the reasons
Jimmy Carter lost reelection

was because his high inflation
caused high gas prices.

But we have
no inflation right now.

Just keep breathing.
Help is almost there.

- All right.
- And what is your name?

George. He ran.

- All right, George.
- What's your last name?

- Zimmerman.
- That's it. Send it.

I'm happy to say
the Gingrich plan

moves you towards
2.50 or less.

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

If he can set the price,
then why isn't it a buck 75?

How did he settle on 2.50?

And what else will be cheaper

if Newt Gingrich
is elected president?

You know that's
not how it works.

I absolutely know
that's not how it works.

Thank you, Howard Worth
of the American Policy Group.

You're watching News Night on ACN.
We'll be back after this.

- Three minutes back.
- We've got the 911 tape

- and we'll open the next block with it.
- Okay.

So your son's a Marine
like you were

and he's taken
and we know there's a plan.

We know he's a few hours away
from being sold

for the purpose
of public beheading.

You wouldn't do it?

Do what, Shep?

They've got a huge crazy problem,
Charlie.

Black and white can live together.
Christian and Muslim.

But you can't have most of the world
living in the 21st century

and the rest living
in the eighth century.

Unless they're willing to limit themselves
to eighth century weapons.

They've got a big
fucking crazy problem

which simply is not addressed
in Common Article I

of the Geneva Conventions.

What are you telling me?

These guys--
Special Forces,

MARSOC, SEALs--

they live under constant threat
of death and torture.

Should they come home and be
threatened with prison?

Isn't it time to change
the public perception?

If your son were the one in there,
wouldn't you do it?

Wouldn't you insist it be done?

Do what?

I'm sorry and all,
but you have to fix the crazy problem.

'Cause this is what happens
when you make it ours.

Anyway, I'm gonna go
catch the last shuttle.

Here's some information on

why we need
yottabytes of memory.

That's why I was here.

Sorry it's crumpled.

Is this the right time to ask
why you date men like this?

- No.
- It's not?

- It's not the right time.
- All right.

Because you don't know
they're like that until they are.

But they are a lot
with you and--

There's no way to tell, Don.

- I'm sorry. I don't believe that.
- You don't?

I don't believe that someone
who is capable of this,

that a shithead this big
is able to keep it a secret

from someone they've been
dating for seven weeks.

You're saying I knew
he was like this but didn't care?

I'm saying you don't have a very high opinion
of yourself and I don't get it.

And since it's not
the right time,

let me also say if it had been
a woman who had done this,

her friends would be saying,
"You go, girl!"

I promise you, he's getting that right now
from his friends in arbitrage.

No.

That's the difference.
Deep down, they think he's an asshole.

He's an asshole right on top.

No, they,
his friends in arbitrage--

I know. I was making a joke.

You're really--

You're impressive.

I have to make a phone call.

- Did you call?
- I did. I called.

- Did you really?
- I did.

That was the right thing.

You know it was the right thing,
and you get to live with that now.

And you're going to
make your father very happy

when he gets the message.

I know.

So call me back at the office.
I'll be here until 11:30.

Or you can call me
on my cell any time.

I saw a guy named
Philip Adams last night.

Phil Adams.
He's well-connected in the acute caucus

of the mental patient wing in the
exotic disorders extreme of the GOP.

We were talking about Simon Weingarden,
and I asked Adams

if he'd have any trouble getting confirmed
as solicitor general if the job opened.

Like has he been paid to speak

to the Righteous Daughters
of Jihadi Excellence or anything?

- And due to my dry delivery--
- Are you kidding me?

No, when I'm in the right mood
I'm like Jack Benny.

No, I'm talking about--
Somebody ran it?

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

You've gotta call someone there.
You've gotta call an editor.

- Why haven't you done that?
- Why haven't I--

- Called an editor.
- I wasn't sure does WorldNetDaily even have--

Yes! Their names and numbers
are in the database.

This is gonna get out of control
and Weingarden's getting tagged.

I can't be blamed for-- I don't think--
How much do you think I can be blamed?

All right,
here's a senior editor.

I'm calling a guy named Munch.

I'm not gonna make it out
of this call alive.

- Put it on speaker.
- You can't laugh.

How am I going to stop myself
when all I've been doing is laughing for hours?

- Hello?
- Mr. Munch?

The case took a turn today
when the part-time Mayor of Sanford,

Jeff Triplett,
overruled his police department

and released the 911 tape
to the press.

We received the audio recording
just a few minutes ago,

and we'll play a portion now.

This guy looks like
he's up to no good

or he's on drugs or something.

It's raining and he's just
walking around looking about.

- He looks black.
- Did you see what he was wearing?

- I was just being hyperbolic.
- Yeah?

I didn't think there was any way
I could be taken seriously.

Yeah, I can see that,
but the thing is,

we've got it
from multiple sources.

David, come on.
You got to take it down and run a retraction.

I appreciate you
clarifying your role,

but like I said,
you weren't the only one.

I was the only source.
Come on now.

I don't think I appreciate being
woken up and called a liar.

It's 8:45.
Where do you live?

Let's say good night, Don.

- My friend, I get that this story is pushing traffic...
- That has nothing--

...but Weingarden didn't do anything
except become a lawyer.

- So...
- I'll tell you for the third time--

We have multiple sources
telling us--

That he spoke to the Righteous Daughters
of Jihadi Excellence?

It turns out your joke
was right on the money.

I made up the fucking name,
David!

There is no such thing as the
Righteous Daughters of the--

What the fuck
is wrong with you?!

- Did you search it?
- I just did.

There are 17 entries.

That's because of your story,
fat-ass!

Mr. Keefer, I think
you're extremely--

Have Neal write this story
including this phone call

and post it on
our website tonight.

Cut off the air supply
to the morning shows.

I think I'm done in here.

Thanks, pal.

Here to speak with us
tonight is Nia Robbie,

a lawyer for the NAACP.

This is the first time either of us
have heard that recording.

What are your initial thoughts?

I think it's pretty clear
this was racially motivated.

I don't think anything's clear.

He's black.
He's up to no good.

He's looking at all the houses.

His family says he may have
been listening to music

on his iPhone and not even aware
Zimmerman was watching.

His family would have no way
of knowing that, though, right?

What they know,
what we know is that he was armed

- with a bag of Skittles and some very dangerous iced tea.
- Mac.

It's George Zimmerman
who gets the benefit of the doubt now.

A benefit never
afforded to Trayvon.

Nia,
Mr. Zimmerman claimed

that Trayvon Martin
looked suspicious.

- That's right.
- How does one look suspicious?

You'd have to ask
Mr. Zimmerman.

This is a helo manifest.

From what?

Operation Genoa.

This is the first piece of paper
we've seen with that name.

Listen,

I sang in an a cappella group in college,
the Whiskey Sodas.

When we'd tour,

the secretary would have
to submit an expense report.

We'd want to bring
a ton of weed,

but we wanted the group
to pay for it.

So in the expense report,
instead of saying weed,

it would say chickens.

Look at the manifest.

".50 cal ammunition.

M261 FFAR
2.75 rocket pods.

MX-76."

What's MX-76?

There's no such thing.

I called three quartermasters.

- It was the gas.
- Look--

We dropped sarin.
This is a true story.

It happened
and we're gonna prove it.

Where'd you get this?

Can I talk to you a second?

- Yeah. Is there a problem?
- Yeah.

I'm transcribing
the full text of the 911 call.

The 911 operator asks is he white,
black, or Hispanic

and Zimmerman answers,
"He looks black."

Yeah.

You cut
the operator's question.

Yeah, but...

Excuse me, I...

Jesse.

I'm sorry, I've got
to bump the segment.

- Why?
- We screwed up.

We aired a badly edited tape
of George Zimmerman

talking to the 911 operator
and I need the space

so we can air the full tape
at the end of the show.

Is this because
I said I was coming out?

- No.
- Because I was gonna come out on the air?

No. I just told you
the reason.

I don't believe you.

I guess I'm gonna have
to live with that.

People are gonna know
about this.

140-character public shaming
is absolutely in order,

but make sure you blame it
on Will and not me

'cause Will's the famous one
and you'll want traction.

Why are you acting
like such a bitch?

I was gonna lose
the segment anyway

and it was 'cause you
were gonna come out.

If it makes you uncomfortable,
then maybe you should come to our meetings.

You want to come out on TV,
I don't care.

But you can't do it here.
He's not Maury Povich.

Tyler was robbed of his right to come out
to the world on his own terms.

Dharun made
that decision for him.

I'm doing what Tyler
never had the chance to do.

I'm taking the power back.

Jesse, you're full of shit.

You want to be a D-lister
and that's it.

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

even though you told me
you didn't know him

so you can bathe
in his reflected tragedy.

Fuck you, Jesse.

That kid killed himself
because his privacy was stolen.

And you think you're
honoring him by tweeting

about coming out
in front of a million and a half strangers?

I'll put up color bars
before I'll put you in front of our cameras.

I thought it was one way
to tell my parents the news

and not be there when I did.

Well, good luck with that.

Thanks.

I saw a video online.
It gets better.

How would you know?

I guess I wouldn't.

Take it easy.

I've known a few of these guys.

I know this one very well.

Having a relationship
with an audience is cool.

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

As long as it's hooking up
and home before sunrise,

then everything's
fine 'cause...

They don't feel about you

the way you want them to.

You were gonna get killed.
I did you a favor.

Sanford is a high crime area,

and this community
in particular.

Is it possible that the extra motivation,
as you said,

pursuing Trayvon
Martin on foot...

When the dispatcher
told him plainly not to.

We're all set. We wanted to wait
for a commercial break.

- That's them?
- Alim and Samirah Kouri.

- Mr. Kouri?
- Yes, this is me. I'm here.

And Mrs. Kouri,
are you there?

I'm here.
Is help coming for my husband?

Will you put this call
on television?

Here's the thing, guys.

Syrians don't commonly say,
"Thank God."

Nobody named Kouri
is registered at the W.

And when that building came down,
it took the cell tower with it.

You still with me...

Stewart?

We have software
that unblocks phone numbers

and that's why your super
is knocking on your door

right now with
a police officer.

Mr. Block, it's Ray.

Could you open the door,
please?

Baba Booey, motherfuckers.

Tonight we take care
of all family business.

Many people are also white.

Nia Robbie,
thank you for joining us.

- Thank you, Will.
- We'll be back after this.

- You're not making a rational expectations argument.
- I am.

Expectations, insofar as they're
informed by predictions,

are essentially--
Okay, look, if the prediction--

All right, you're making a rational
expectations argument,

but you're not being rational.

There's no risk here.
What are we talking about?

It's not pure,
frictionless arbitrage.

Excuse me.
I'm so sorry to interrupt.

Hey, Sloan.
You in the neighborhood?

Always.
I work a block over.

Cathy told me to come back.

Scott, can we talk
for just one second?

I'll have him right back.

Excuse me.

I made it to the rage phase.

Scott, where are you going?

Hey!

No, no.

There have been nearly 200 hail reports
from Missouri to Alabama,

including baseball-sized hail
in Carrollton, Illinois.

What happened?

Jim, I swear to God
it was for time.

- You didn't hear it and think--
- I had to cut it to 25.

You didn't hear it and think,
"If I take out the question

- and only leave the answer"...
- I know.

- ..."it won't sound like it was an answer"?
- I didn't.

If I had, I would have--

Obviously I wouldn't
have cut it--

- It was just for time?
- Yes.

You weren't trying
to see justice done?

I had one pass.

I was hearing it
for the first time.

And I'm not sure I need to be disciplined
by a guy who gave away an interview,

'cause that happened, Jim,
that's what you did.

You wanted to save Hallie,
so you gave away our interview.

And watching you defend
that column when you know--

I had six minutes
to cut a five-minute piece of audio

down to 25 seconds.

I should have been
listening for it.

I know what 911 calls
sound like.

I just--

I never remotely prepared
for this scenario.

- Look--
- The thing is,

I'm afraid to sleep
alone at night,

so sometimes I go out.

That's all.

That's all it is.
That's all.

Yeah.

All right, you apologize,
but make it brief.

- Yeah.
- A mea culpa isn't really right.

- I agree.
- The full audiotape is 4:07

and we're gonna play it
right through

and you should point out
the specific mistake that was made.

- You want an intro on the prompter?
- No, I'm good.

After the show,
I'm gonna tell you about

the Bonnie and Clyde
of prank callers.

Okay. How's Sloan?

She's gonna be fine.
She scratched herself for tonight,

but I just saw she's back
in Don's rundown.

Good.

According to a number
of Internet sources,

men your dad's age
have a full recovery rate of 93%.

So especially
knowing your father--

He died.
My father died.

What did you say?

He died.

He had-- It's called
a ventricular fibrillation.

When?

About 10 minutes ago.

12.
The last break.

I called to leave a message
when I said I was gonna

and my sister
answered his phone.

- You've been sitting here--
- It's all right.

- Will.
- It really is all right.

Mac, we're up.

All right.
Here we go.

- In 10.
- Ready graphics 44 and 45.

Ready.

In five, four, three...

Will.

Will, we're back on you.

- Go to commercial.
- We don't have one. This is the F block.

- Is Terry ready in DC?
- Control, this is New York. Is Terry at the desk?

No.

Will.

Well, I guess it's just us now.

We have an important correction
in the Trayvon Martin story.