The Greatest Country in the World
Another Lesson from "The Newsroom"
Content Warning – In the final paragraph I use an expletive that is coarse and unacceptable in polite company. I use it because it captures a moment and a strong emotion. I apologise to any readers who may be offended.
In April 2024 I posted an article entitled “Lessons from the Newsroom: Before “Kindness” Became a Thing” It had been written back in 2013 and it had a really good message about being polite and about being decent. It was one of those moments when drama spoke truth.
The Newsroom was the creation of Aaron Sorkin. Like another show of his – The West Wing which was another favourite of mine – it was an idealised version of TV journalism. It was a series about things as they are but also as how they should be.
At its core, The Newsroom argues that journalism should serve the public interest, not ratings or political agendas. The protagonist, Will McAvoy, declares in the pilot episode that “America is not the greatest country in the world anymore” (more later) because it has abandoned facts, reason, and civil discourse. The show positions journalism as a civic duty — to inform, not entertain.
The show repeatedly stresses the value of getting the story right over getting it first. A recurring plot point involves the team refusing to air a major scoop until they confirm it with multiple reliable sources, even under immense pressure.
The series shows how journalists are constrained by network executives, advertisers, political affiliations, and legal departments. McAvoy and his team often push back against these forces to maintain editorial independence. Good journalism often requires courage to stand up to power — both political and corporate.
The show questions the traditional notion of false balance — giving equal weight to both sides even when one is clearly misinformed or dishonest. It advocates for what some call “moral clarity” in reporting, especially on issues like climate change, civil rights, or public deception. Objectivity doesn’t mean neutrality in the face of falsehoods; it means fairness, evidence, and intellectual honesty.
Though Will McAvoy is the face of the broadcast, the series highlights the collaborative nature of journalism — producers, researchers, field reporters, and legal advisors all play essential roles in making news possible.
In its most ambitious moments, The Newsroom frames journalism as central to the system of democracy. When it functions well, it informs voters, holds the powerful accountable, and creates a shared space for public discourse. A free and ethical press is indispensable to democratic society.
Like The West Wing, The Newsroom has some glorious moments where it stops being drama and becomes didactic. The snippet I referred to in my earlier piece about the show was an example but I was reminded of the piece referred to above from the pilot.
Will McAvoy, the news anchor is part of a panel at a University seminar. The panel is thrown a patsy question from one of the audience – “Can you say why America is the greatest country in the world?” Other panel members give anticipated answers. McAvoy’s first answer is as flat as a pancake. The host insists on an answer.
One of McAvoy’s co-workers is in the audience. She holds up a sign saying “It’s Not” (the greatest country in the world). And McAvoy starts one of the most stunning pieces of critique as an answer to the question.
It not the greatest country in the world. The audience and the seminar host are aghast. McAvoy then goes on and expands. And his critique is damning.
But when he has finished he pauses and reflects on what America has lost. What America stood for – for what was right, care for neighbours, reached for the stars, aspired to intelligence. The America that I saw and loved when I lived there as a Field Service student.
And I still love America. And I love what she stands for. For Tom Jefferson’s “self-evident truths” and Alexander Hamilton and James Madison’s debates in “The Federalist.” For Martin Luther King’s assessment of a person not on the colour of his skin but the content of his character. A country based on a Constitution and a Bill of Rights and the Rule of Law with a Fourth Estate that was second to none. When the people who presented the news – Huntley and Brinkley, Walter Cronkite – were trusted and relied upon.
Will closes by saying that the first step in solving a problem is recognising there is one. He closes with the remark that America is not the greatest country in the world anymore and in the audience his co-worker holds up another sign – but it can be.
One of the things about Sorkin’s characters is that when they “light up” their delivery and their eloquence is the sort of thing that ordinary folks can only wish to emulate. Clearly Will has been thinking about the issues and like any good newsman he has the facts at his fingertips and he fires them out – salvo after salvo.
And The Newsroom ran from 2012 – 2014. Will’s monologue is not recent. But it resonates today.
The clip is here and I recommend it. It is a brilliant moment - 4 minutes and 14 seconds. And this was from the pilot of the show. I have seen it so many times. It brings a tear to the eye and a lump in the throat and at the end, when he pulls the threads together it makes me want to fucking cheer.
Because the message is hope and the hope is that once again America can be the greatest country in the world.
An interesting discussion. Coincidentally I only recently viewed that clip when it popped up on one of my feeds. It was indeed a good watch.
I remain convinced that western civilisation, built upon the religious morals and ethical frameworks of Judaism and Christianity, provides the best opportunity to humans for a functional and satisfying life. Sure, there are some other places that do quite well in terms of function (eg Japan), but they have their own issues. (Lovely people, but not as free culturally as the west.) Not many other cultures do anywhere near as well.
It all comes down to what one feels is the pivotal criterion (criteria perhaps) for a 'good life'. And as an ardent theist I subscribe to 'freedom' as the most important of 'gifts'. We were given that freedom (according to my worldview story...) and the rest is up to us. Without freedom, life cannot flourish. America is a beacon of light for the freedom of humanity. There have been a bunch of arseholes along the way, but its core values are the design of some wise heads.
I like Americans, many don't. They have some issues, occasionally a lack of external experience, but damn they are generally very good people. That was my experience at least over a half dozen visits.
Anyone who cherishes said freedoms, must surely share my desire for our western societies to return to our core values. The US (& NZ!) have indeed gone backwards, hopefully we have not fallen too far to recover.
But it can be. What's diminished the USA ? Post-modernism. It suggests that everything is a structure and that good and evil are the biggest constructs. MAGA. Look to Israel defending itself and defeating the mediaeval mullahs. But then look there and close to home at the destruction of the nuclear family - and our domestic construct of the whanau. The USA though is still exceptional - the city on the hill - because of its impeccable foundation.