News reports

Current events offer fertile ground for fiction. Indeed, many great screen stories have been “ripped from the headlines” – or at least inspired by one. Our series of guides to working with different source material moves on to look at news reports.

News reports: the basics

A common fiction writing exercise involves going through a newspaper and picking out a report which could make a compelling short story or script. This is because, by their nature, reports are concise and cover the five “Ws” – what, where, why, when, who.

These “facts” also give you the basic components of any story. Indeed, early in the process of developing a script, we’re encouraged to ask ourselves:

  • What is it about?
  • Who is it about?
  • Where does it take place?
  • When does it take place?
  • Why is it important?

Short reporting can provide a jumping off point for drama or work as a useful research tool. But for the purposes of developing fact-based film and TV shows, the source (or inspiration) is usually longer form reporting which fleshes out the story, in a similar way as magazine articles.

Standalone longer form reporting might provide the inspiration for drama. Examples include the source articles for Deepwater Horizon (2016) about the BP oil spill and Dr. Death (2021), which revealed the malpractice of neurosurgeon Christopher Duntsch,

However, some current events span weeks, even years, with reporters continuing to follow the story as developments emerge. Here, it is the reporting as a whole which provides the source material. Examples of films adapted from collections of reports include She Said (2022), which first exposed sexual assault allegations again Harvey Weinstein, and All the President’s Men (1976) about the Watergate scandal. (All sources at the end)

There might also be overlap with other source material. For example, in the examples above, the journalists involved the Weinstein and Watergate stories published their reporting as non-fiction books, while Duntsch’s crimes became the subject of a podcast.

In all these cases, it is the timeliness of the material which is the hook. All of the films we’ve referred to were released within five years of the actual events which inspired them.

The challenges of working with news reports

Firstly, it’s important to be alert when relying on reports as source material. We put “facts” in inverted commas, as, today, there is a lot of stuff published which bears little relation to the truth. It’s no big revelation that many media outlets are saturated in bias, which is usually politically motivated.

If you want to develop commercial projects, it’s also important to be aware of the implications of that bias, which can affect how the industry views your script. Coming down on the “wrong side” of a hot-button issue can lead to rejection, even if the script is strong. Recent examples include #MeToo.

Hollywood has its own biases and, generally, wants to keep in step with the cultural zeitgeist. Even historical films are developed in ways which are sympathetic to modern trends – not always to great acclaim.

In addition, while the topical nature of news provides a compelling hook, remember that you’re writing on spec. This means that the process of getting your script sold and produced can take years. As we’ve seen, studios can move quickly to commission a pilot or film based upon topical news. However, we have to ensure our spec scripts don’t get stale too quickly.

A further things to consider is how a story plays out. All the President’s Men ends before the final outcome – Nixon’s resignation in 1976. Indeed, the book on which the film was based was published in 1974. While the film tells us the fate of some of the Watergate players, the final sound of reporters Woodward and Bernstein still typing away lets us know there’s more to come.

How to work with news reports as source material

What all this means for writers is that even though you might get your initial idea from a news report, you’ll need to spend time fleshing out and – if necessary – fictionalizing the story. Try to get a wider view of a topic in order to create a balance plot, even if you ultimately choose to adopt a particular POV.

One great use of news reports is as a secondary source for original drama. For example, newsworthy water disputes which took place in Southern California at the start of the 20th century provided the starting point for the development of Chinatown (1974).

Another great use of reports is as a valuable research tool for historical drama. News reports can help you to follow a story over a long period, adding colour and authenticity, as well as immediacy.

Looking back at events through a contemporary lens often leads to 20/20 hindsight. However, when you can follow the story as it unfolded, you get a whole new perspective.

For example, in June 1972, people woke up one morning to news reports of a break in at the Watergate hotel in Washington, D.C. They had no idea back then what this would lead to. Similarly, looking back on this episode now through a modern POV when it seems quite tame can reduce its impact.

Rights issues

As you might expect, the rights to specific news reports belong to the publisher, as does any material stemming from those reports.

However, if you have more than one source for your story then rights issues are less likely to emerge. This is especially true with current events. Even if a story was broken by a particular outlet, if it’s newsworthy, it’s probably going to be picked up by others.

For example, war correspondent Morley Safer’s reporting from Vietnam during the U.S. conflict – particularly his 1965 report for CBS’ 60 Minutes, “The Burning of Cam Ne” – opened the door to wider reporting on the atrocities taking place against civilians.

As always, do your own investigations into the rights ownership of any material you want to fictionalize and, if necessary, consult an IP lawyer.

Films inspired by or based on news reports

We end with some more fact-based films which were drawn from news reporting:

  • The China Syndrome (1979): Inspired by real nuclear plant safety concerns, the film was released shortly before the Three Mile Island disaster.
  • The Killing Fields (1984): The film is based on New York Times journalist Sydney Schanberg’s reporting on the Cambodian genocide and his friendship with Dith Pran.
  • The Insider (1999): The film was inspired by 60 Minutes and the Wall Street Journal reports exposing Big Tobacco’s manipulation of nicotine levels and the whistleblowing of Jeff Wigand.
  • Zodiac (2007): The film is based on newspaper articles and books covering the Zodiac Killer case, particularly the reporting by the San Francisco Chronicle.
  • Spotlight (2015): The film was inspired by the Boston Globe’s Pulitzer Prize-winning investigation into child abuse by Catholic priests.
  • The Post (2017): A companion piece to All the President’s Men, the later film is based on the Washington Post’s reporting on the Pentagon Papers and the battle over government secrecy.
  • Richard Jewell (2019): The film was inspired by news coverage of the 1996 Atlanta Olympics bombing and how security guard Richard Jewell was falsely accused.
  • Official Secrets (2019): This British film was based on The Observer’s reporting about intelligence whistleblower Katharine Gun, who exposed an illegal NSA spying operation.

Sources

  1. “Deepwater Horizon’s Final Hours“ by David Barstow, David Rohde, and Stephanie Saul published in the New York Times (25 December 2010)
  2. “Dr. Death” by Matt Goodman published in the Dallas Observer (24 October 2016)
  3. First reported in the article “Harvey Weinstein Paid Off Sexual Harassment Accusers for Decades” by Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey published in the New York Times (5 October 2017)
  4. All the President’s Men (1974), a non-fiction book by Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, based on their reporting in the Washington Post