Journalism Practices in the Film All the President's Men

In the 1976 movie All the President's Men, Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman play the two Washington Post reporters (Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, respectively) who helped uncover the Watergate scandal during the Nixon administration. It would be an understatement to say that the duo's journalistic techniques bordered on risky, as they took a story on a break-in at the Democratic National Committee's offices at the Watergate Hotel and ended up forcing President Nixon to resign.

One of the methods Woodward and Bernstein used was sheer grit, creative thinking, and a "never say die" attitude while interviewing. Always pushed on by their editor, Ben Bradlee, to "get another source," the two met, or tried to meet, with almost every name that was associated with Watergate. Woodward and Bernstein would not be ignored in an interview. While speaking with one woman, Bernstein asked for initials of names (since she would not give away full names) to implicate individuals involved. They go back to this same woman with a trick to get her to give them information, one which, in Woodward's own words, will "screw them" if she denies. When told to find one more source so the story could be run in the climax of the movie, Bernstein uses a 10-count telephone technique to verify the correctness of the story. Even though these people did not consent to have their names printed in the news (a wish the two reporters respected) these interviews aided in assuring the Washington Post that they were printing the truth.

Woodward also met with a mysterious source (presumably with connections to the White House) named "Deep Throat" in a parking garage. This man was an important tool in keeping the investigation on the right track. Of course, Woodward had to implement a journalistic technique in trust when talking to this anonymous source. Their exploration was going to clash directly with government agencies, something that wasn't looked favorably upon up until this point in history, and thus believing (while endangering your career) was a gamble.

Hugh Sloan said in an interview that, "Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward ... practically lived on our doorstep." Probably the duo's greatest asset as far as journalistic techniques was getting sucked into their stories to the point that they were the only things on their minds. It seemed like neither of the two ever slept, as they were always searching for the new break.

Works Cited

All quotations taken from "All The President's Men," 1976, directed by Alan J. Pakula