S-R showcases some of America’s popular journalism movies at ‘Newspapers in the Movies Night’

“Stop the presses,” on- and off-the-record conversations, hostile editor meetings.

All were depicted in various movie clips from pre-World War II to the newest Superman movie and shown Wednesday night at the Bing Crosby Theater in downtown Spokane as part of a Spokesman-Review Northwest Passages book club event.

Attendees to the sellout event, dubbed “Newspapers in the Movies Night,” watched clips, like an interaction between Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein in the 1976 film “All the President’s Men,” and a passionate on- and off-the-record conversation between Superman and investigative journalist Lois Lane from the 2025 “Superman” movie.

Spokesman-Review editor Rob Curley hosted the event, explaining which clips resemble a real newsroom and which ones lean toward Hollywood fiction.

Spokane author Chris Crutcher briefly joined Curley on stage to share his favorite newspaper movie character – Boston Globe editor Marty Baron, played by actor Liev Schreiber, in the 2015 Oscar winning-movie “Spotlight.”

The movie tracks a Boston Globe investigative journalist team, called “Spotlight,” and its investigation into systemic child sex abuse by dozens of Boston Catholic priests. Crutcher said he appreciated Baron for keeping his “eye on the real prize” by waiting for the reporters to collect all relevant information before publishing.

“He waited for the story to come out right,” Crutcher said.

From a previously recorded video, New York Times reporter and author Eli Saslow said his favorite newspaper movie of all time, “All the President’s Men,” inspired him to be a journalist. He said the movie “glorified” the Watergate scandal investigation, but in an “accurate way.” Saslow said he worked at the Washington Post, the newspaper that brought the scandal to light.

“It’s a movie that really shows the journalistic process,” Saslow said.

The Spokesman-Review, owned by the Cowles family for 142 years, is transitioning to a nonprofit, Comma Community Journalism Lab.

The plan calls for Publisher Stacey Cowles and his family’s Cowles Co. to transfer ownership of the newspaper and award a $2 million matching grant to Comma, which Curley founded.

In less than eight months, Spokane has donated 85% of the $2 million match, Curley said Wednesday.

“We’re not there yet, but we can see the light at the end of the tunnel,” said Yvonne Esquibel Smith, Comma’s community development director.