Navigating The Newsroom: A Podcast on HBO's The Newsroom

Andrew has an update on what's going on at Film Geek Radio this summer.

Season 2 of The Newsroom may have finished, but Navigating The Newsroom still has one more episode to go! In this jam-packed finale, an all-star ensemble of guests are back to give their thoughts on how the season ultimately turned out. Andrew and Andrew call up Inkoo Kang, Sam Fragoso, and to discuss what went right and what wrong. Was it a good decision to focus on Operation Genoa? Is Jerry Dantana a problematic character? Was the ending satisfying? And was the Maggie in Africa subplot really so awful? Plus, a lot more.

ABOUT OUR GUEST:

Inkoo Kang is the TV columnist for Film School Rejects and a film critic for the Village Voice. Follow her on Twitter @thinkovision.

Sam Fragoso is the founder of Movie Mezzanine. This is his first time appearing on Navigating The Newsroom. Follow him on Twitter @SamFragoso.

Corey Atad is a film blogger. Follow him on Twitter @CoreyAtad.

Joanna Robinson is the Features Editor at Pajiba and a contributor to Vulture. She also co-hosts the podcasts The Station Agents and The Ones Who Knock. Follow her on Twitter @quityourjrob.

Devindra Hardawar is the National Editor for VentureBeat. He also writes about movies at /Film and can be heard every week on the /Filmcast. As if that wasn't enough, he also podcasts about tech on The Drill Down and discusses The Legend of Korra on Republic City Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter @Devindra.

Allison Loring is a writer for Film School Rejects. She's also a contributor for Fanhattan, which is preparing to launch a new device called Fan TV that will consolidate access to thousands of movies and television series. Follow her on Twitter @AllisonLoring.

SHOW NOTES:

00:20 - Intro

6:03 – Inkoo Kang: the lack of stakes in the final two episodes

11:24 - Sam Fragoso: Jim's relationship with Hallie

16:27 - Corey Atad: Will/Mac, Don/Sloan, and where was Patton Oswalt?!

22:27 - Devindra Hardawar: Jerry Dantana problems and Chris Messina's awesomeness

29:50 - Joanna Robinson: Focusing more on characters we like rather than news

36:35 - Allison Loring: Getting out of the newsroom, a need for more fictionalized stories

40:33 - Was Maggie in Africa really that bad?

46:18 - Final thoughts on Season 2

55:14 - Show close

DON'T FORGET: You can contact the show by emailing [email protected]. Thanks for listening!

It’s the end of Season 2 of The Newsroom! Andrew Robinson still isn’t back--don’t worry, he’ll return for our season wrap-up episode--but Brian Roan from The Film Stage is once again able to fill in. He and Andrew debate just how messy of an ending this turned out to be. Is rejecting the Petraeus story a good choice? How is the Will/Mac relationship indicative of a larger problem regarding Sorkin’s expectations and the audience’s reality? Is Maggie the new Jim? And just how great was The Kiss?! Plus, Lisa is back, Neal is wasted, new media gets a few shout-outs, and more!

ABOUT OUR GUEST:

Joanna Robinson is the Features Editor at Pajiba and a contributor to Vulture. She also co-hosts the podcasts The Station Agents and The Ones Who Knock. Follow her on Twitter @quityourjrob.

SHOW NOTES:

00:20 - Intro

7:45 - General thoughts on the finale

10:08 - Rejecting the Petraeus story

17:42 - Lisa is back!

21:23 - Developing Maggie

23:53 - Wrapping everything up, absolving everyone

30:08 - The end of Will/Mac relationship drama? Expectations vs. reality

43:22 - The West Wing and the importance of apologies

46:56 - Taylor attacks Will; her relationship prospects

51:08 - Jim’s bad call

52:07 - The Kiss, Mac’s Wikipedia page

55:22 - Where’s Patton Oswalt?

56:53 - Why HBO?

59:15 - Ending with music and Maggie becoming like Jim

1:03:02 - Hatred for DC, Neal

1:05:26 - Closing thoughts

DON'T FORGET: You can contact the show by emailing [email protected]. Thanks for listening!

Andrew Robinson is away in Toronto this week, but don't worry! Special guest Joanna Robinson from Pajiba and The Ones Who Knock is here to discuss the first part of this season's finale. Is the Will/Mac relationship handled well? Why do these characters keep screwing up? How come Leona won't let them resign? And does the ending imply "Preachy Will" is going to return? Tune in to find out. Also, there's a brief tangent about people falling down, which is always fun.

ABOUT OUR GUEST:

Joanna Robinson is the Features Editor at Pajiba and a contributor to Vulture. She also co-hosts the podcasts The Station Agents and The Ones Who Knock. Follow her on Twitter @quityourjrob.

SHOW NOTES:

00:20 - Intro

4:09 - Joanna Robinson's overall thoughts on The Newsroom

9:41 - General thoughts on this episode

12:47 - The Will/Mac relationship; is Emily Mortimer leaving the show?

18:14 - Preachy Will vs. Balanced Will

22:39 - Comparisons with The West Wing

28:25 - Female characters and sexism

35:39 - Leona wants to be "honorable"

37:37 - Everybody is screwing up

43:26 - Don's scoop

47:56 - Show close

DON'T FORGET: You can contact the show by emailing [email protected]. Thanks for listening!

Special guest Inkoo Kang from Film School Rejects and Village Voice joins Andrew and Andrew on this episode to discuss "Red Team III." The Operation Genoa fallout is finally commencing, but is it satisfying? Was Jerry's tape-editing scandal really necessary? What's up with all the Benghazi stuff? And what's up with Leona's change of heart? Tune in to find out.

SHOW NOTES:

00:20 - Intro

4:34 - General thoughts

19:06 - Jerry's fault, or institutional failure?

27:13 - Charlie's source and nepotism in the industry

33:48 - Sorkin's style, finding the right tone

41:50 - Reporting vs. gut feeling

47:30 - Holes in the story

50:56 - Leona's change of heart, ratings

57:00 - Would you watch News Night?

59:39 - Show close

DON'T FORGET: You can contact the show by emailing [email protected]. Thanks for listening!

In this episode, William Bibbiani from Crave Online returns to discuss "One Step Too Many" and how this season of The Newsroom is an improvement over the first one. Are the relationships and sexual tension becoming easier to tolerate? What staple of Sorkin writing does he screw up this time? And how does everyone feel about Jerry being "evil" now? Tune in to find out. Plus, a random tangent on John Carter and why sports are cool.

SHOW NOTES:

00:20 - Intro

2:30 - William Bibbiani's thoughts on Season 2

6:30 - Jim and Hallie go out to dinner

12:20 - The Romney campaign as backdrop for character development

15:07 - Maggie's drinking problem

17:58 - Sloan and the ol' humorous-aside-during-serious-conversations trick

25:40 - Will's relationship with Nina and the audience

32:08 - Operation Genoa developments

42:44 - John Carter and sports

52:30 - Show close

DON'T FORGET: You can contact the show by emailing [email protected]. Thanks for listening!

For the first time ever, there are two guests joining Andrew and Andrew on Navigating The Newsroom! In this episode, Sam Fragoso and Corey Atad drop by to discuss all the different subplots happening in the fifth episode of Season 2. Is this the best episode of the series so far? What is Sorkin implying about how technology affects relationships? Are the developments with Sloan and Maggie appropriate, or do they suggest Sorkin may be perpetuating some of the same sexism he's critiquing? Tune in to find out. Also, go watch Broadcast News.

SHOW NOTES:

00:20 - Intro

2:45 - General thoughts

8:40 - Charlie and Genoa

18:49 - Sloan and her nude photos

29:29 - How technology affects relationships

33:08 - Maggie's mistake; is Sorking making a jab at a specific critic?

41:34 - The word "sluts," victim-blaming

45:12 - Neal as a character, Mac's "coming out" subplot

47:56 - Will and his dad

55:16 - Don and WorldNetDaily, prank calls

58:47 - A tangent about Broadcast News

1:00:30 - Show close

DON'T FORGET: You can contact the show by emailing [email protected]. Thanks for listening!

In this episode, Allison Loring from Film School Rejects and Fanhattan returns to discuss the fourth episode of the second season, "Unintended Consequences." How does everyone feel about Jim leaving the campaign trail? Is Will's takedown of Occupy a fair one? Is the big reveal about what happened to Maggie in Africa fully satisfying? And what about critics who claim this episode is borderline racist? Tune in to find out.

SHOW NOTES:

00:20 - Intro

5:09 - Allison's thoughts on Season 2 so far

6:57 - General thoughts on this episode

11:16 - Jim on the campaign trail

20:57 - Occupy Wall Street, here and overseas

35:04 - Genoa developments, legal stuff

48:37 - Maggie in Africa

1:05:24 - Is this depiction of Africa accurate or kinda racist?

1:15:10 - Brief thoughts on the depiction of women this season

1:17:45 - Show close

DON'T FORGET: You can contact the show by emailing [email protected]. Thanks for listening!

Andrew Robinson couldn't make it this week, but don't worry! The insightful Brian Roan from DearFilm and The Film Stage filled in as a co-host to discuss the third episode of the second season, "Willie Pete." There's not as much "relationship stuff" this episode, but what's going on with Will and Nina? Is Jim becoming the new Will? And how is the show both killing off and reviving certain storylines from Season 1 to its advantage? Plus, Andrew and Brian give Aaron Sorkin a few ideas for how to end the season.

SHOW NOTES:

00:20 - Intro

3:05 - General thoughts

11:30 - Will/Mac and Will/Nina

22:20 - Why does Jim like Maggie, again?

24:54 - The opening scene

29:41 - Jim on the campaign trail, suggestions for Sorkin

38:31 - Genoa stuff

43:00 - Main topic: Wrapping up certain leftover plot threads, reviving others, flashback structure

57:12 - Other miscellaneous topics

55:20 - Show close

DON'T FORGET: You can contact the show by emailing [email protected]. Thanks for listening!

Special guest Devindra Hardawar from /Film and VentureBeat stops by to discuss the second episode of Season 2, "The Genoa Tip." Is Will's 9/11 backstory effective? Will U.S. drone policy be an effective core issue to drive this season? Is the presentation of campaign journalism realistic? And what's up with all the romantic entanglements? Tune in to find out.

SHOW NOTES:

00:20 - Intro

2:27 - General thoughts

9:00 - Emphasizing the "process" of news

16:43 - Will's first day behind the desk

21:35 - Less preaching, Troy Davis, why Don rules

26:50 - The drone debate and Will's Republicanism

31:24 - The campaign trail and competitive journalism

36:05 - Main topic: Maggie, FourSquare stalking, all the romantic entanglements

47:44 - Other miscellaneous stuff

55:20 - Show close

DON'T FORGET: You can contact the show by emailing [email protected]. Thanks for listening!