Anderson Cooper, Carl Bernstein to join TCM series on journalism in film

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Turner Classic Movies is examining the role journalism played in the world of cinema, with perspectives ranging from “His Girl Friday” and “Network” to “The Year of Living Dangerously,” while highlighting the importance of the profession throughout the years.

Joining TCM host Ben Mankiewicz to discuss the films are CNN’s Anderson Cooper and CNN’s political analyst Carl Bernstein.

Programming kicks off March 7 with “All The President’s Men,” Alan J. Pakula’s riveting film based on the book by Bernstein and fellow Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward, and continues every Thursday throughout the month in primetime.

While TCM is focusing more on classic moves, there are numerous other films that feature TV news scenes or take place inside the TV news business.

TCM’s salute to Journalism In The Movies will be broken down into the following topics:

• Journalism and Politics airing March 7 with Carl Bernstein – features “Citizen Kane” (1941), Orson Welles’ groundbreaking masterpiece about a newspaper magnate partly based on the real-life William Randolph Hearst; and “All the King’s Men” (1949), about the career of a Southern politician as seen through the eyes of a journalist
• Newspaper Noir airing March 14 with Carl Bernstein – showcases “Billy Wilder’s Ace in the Hole” (1951) the compelling account of a cynical reporter who exploits the plight of a young man trapped in a collapsed cave and “Sweet Smell of Success” (1957) tells of a powerful, Walter Winchell-like newspaper columnist who manipulates the lives around him with the aid of a scheming press agent
• TV News airing March 21 with Anderson Cooper – features two 1970s dramas that were very timely in their day and remain relevant today, “Network” (1976), looks at volatile relationships among the staff of a television network that will do anything for high ratings and “The China Syndrome” (1979) about a television newswoman who stumbles onto deadly secrets at a nuclear power plant
• Newspaper Comedies airing March 21 with Anderson Cooper- includes “His Girl Friday” (1940) with Cary Grant as the hard-boiled editor – whose star reporter is now his former wife
• Reporters at War airing March 28 with Anderson Cooper – highlights Burgess Meredith as WWII correspondent Ernie Pyle in William Wellman’s “The Story of G.I. Joe” (1945), “The Year Of Living Dangerously” where two American journalists get more than they’d bargained for during an Indonesian revolution and “The Quiet American” (1958) about an American economist who gets caught between Communists and colonialists in Indochina

“Reporters make for odd movie heroes. They’re rarely glamorous and often unfashionable. But a good, relentless journalist pursuing a story can effectively pull double duty as the protagonist – as the voice for the audience. At their best, reporters pursue truth, a trait shared by the best movies,” said Ben Mankiewicz, TCM Primetime Host in a statement. “Anderson Cooper and Carl Bernstein are two of the finest reporters working today and I’m honored to partner with them on our Journalism In The Movies programming, showcasing the need for truth-telling in an era when journalism itself is under fire on a regular basis.”