The Press Secretary

In September 2000, at the tail end of Clinton's second term, the producers of this documentary were granted unprecedented access to the White House's West Wing. For three days, a crew followed Clinton's last press secretary Joe Lockhart, a battle-scarred veteran of the impeachment wars, as he made the rounds, met the press, defended the President, and articulated the Clinton administration's views with an eye towards shaping a legacy. In recent years new technologies such as cable news 24/7 and the Internet have put the news cycle into overdrive, increased the value of gossip and speculation, and sharpened conflicts between White House reporters and administration officials (indeed, this video is a reminder of pre-September 11th days when a hot story could be generated by some gossip released on the Drudge Report's Internet site). Lockhart and press veterans Helen Thomas and Claire Shipman describe a daily duel of agendas where victory, defined by the next day's headlines, is always temporary. Viewers expecting The West Wing TV theatrics may be disappointed, as real-life reporters are most likely to be interested in mundane matters such as press conference seating charts. The West Wing is a special world with a unique vocabulary--"gaggle" is an informal press briefing, "pool spray" is a hit or miss Q&A session conducted before the President meets a visiting head of state; etc. Is democracy being served by the process? This WGBH special seems to suggest that, like it or not, this is the future of politics and mass communication in the 21st century. Executive produced by Wag the Dog director Barry Levinson, this smart behind-the-scenes look is definitely recommended. Aud: C, P. (S. Rees)