Last year was a trying time for politics worldwide – Bush and his Republicans were ousted by promising Democrat Barack Obama, Robert Mugabe couldn’t accept the fact Zimbabweans didn’t re-elect him, China were out of favour after the Beijing Olympics failed to lighten their image and Russian media seemed to comment on Vladimir Putin’s body more favourably over his work. As the US is a powerhouse of the Western world, Hollywood usually focuses on its homeland when it comes to big political films. The 08-09 summer is no exception, with Frost/Nixon (here in Australia) first released ahead of February’s W, Oliver Stone’s take on Dubya’s years in office. American Presidents have always provided interesting, if not scandalous, affairs, but none could have been bigger than what turned out to be the greatest investigative journalism piece in history – the Watergate scandal.

“It leads everywhere. Get out your notebook. There’s more.”

Seven burglars broke into the Watergate building intending to bug the Democratic National Party headquarters but were caught and put to trial. Bob Woodward from the Washington Post, who was assigned to report the case, found that digging deeper led into hidden conversations, witness cover-ups and unexplained fund transfers that rose from the Republicans’ Committee to Re-elect (for President Nixon to extend his stay in office) to the top of the Administration. Together with colleague Carl Bernstein, they ran a series of stories following the trial of how secret funds were being used – not for humanitarian aid as Nixon suggested but for gathering intelligence on their opponents.

The scandal led to President Nixon’s resignation, still the only Commander-in-Chief in history to do so mid-term. Americans were shocked by what their leader had done and demanded answers. But months later they still had none, after new President Gerald Ford gave Nixon a full pardon from any wrong-doing. Bernstein and Woodward released their discovery as a book, which soon had a film of the same name, All the President’s Men. With Alan J. Pakula at the helm and Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman as the leads, it was still cautious ground and had to be treated with importance but these names brought credibility and interest to a very intriguing story. For those who hadn’t read the book, the film showed audiences how Woodward and Bernstein unravelled the mystery and the pressure they were under. For the film isn’t just about Watergate, but also how journalists uncover and handle such huge information. Many films have been made about reporters, but none with such importance. This really happened, and was still fresh in America’s mind.

“Woodward. Bernstein. You’re both on the story. Now don’t fuck it up.”

What Woodward and Bernstein did for investigative journalism is something that arguably no-one has bettered. Their tenacity in getting witnesses to talk; or rather to agree with their theories is superb to watch in the cinematic adaptation. Redford and Hoffman give us a picture of men desperate to keep their jobs but to reveal something that was in the greater interest of the public is exactly what journalism students are taught as a main priority in their work. It provided journalists and those studying the craft among others inspiration to continue with it and strive to be like Woodward and Bernstein. A major source of theirs came through the infamous ‘Deep Throat’; a friend of Woodward’s who led them in the right direction without handing over straight information. This led to another ethical issue for Woodward and Bernstein – the lack of named sources brought criticism even from the Post itself, with editors unsure about running a series of stories without any names. Their trust paid off in one of the biggest scoops in newspaper history, and we must remember, in a time before the Internet.

Conclusion:

All the President’s Men remains just as relevant now in an age where news is instant and constantly evolving. What followed it were the famous Frost interviews, where English talk-show host David Frost won the rights to Nixon’s only post-Watergate TV interview. He would have borrowed from Bernstein and Woodward along with his own research to get out of Nixon what no-one else did. The release of Frost/Nixon has brought it all back to the surface in a time where there is political turmoil and change. Journalists continue to question motives of leaders, as do Hollywood directors and everyday citizens. The theme of the film is to trust your gut instinct, and to know who you support and why.

Corruption must be stamped out on all levels, and All the President’s Men is a cinematic example of an account that proves it can be done.

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