With Donald Trump back in office, journalists and the free press are once again under attack. It is not the first time this has happened, and it will not be the last time. However, there has been a lot of pushback recently about the media and how the press should interact with people, especially the rich and famous. None of this is better explored or examined than in “Nobody Speak: Trials of the Free Press.”
“Nobody Speak: Trials of the Free Press” is a Netflix documentary that came out in 2017 and was directed by Brian Knappenberger. Knappenberger had been watching the Terry Bollea v. Gawker Media trial and became intrigued, deciding to do a deep dive into the case.
Terry Bollea, better known by his wrestling name Hulk Hogan, was suing Gawker Media for publishing a sex tape involving Hogan’s wife, Heather Clem, and his friend and radio show host Bubba “the Love Sponge” Clem. Hogan argued it was infringing on his right to privacy and sought over $100 million in damages. Gawker Media, being a tabloid media outlet, didn’t imagine that Hogan would want to go through the lengthy process to sue them, let alone get the amount he claimed. However, what Gawker Media didn’t know was that billionaire Peter Thiel was funding and helping Hogan throughout the lawsuit.
This lawsuit and all the research and interviews primarily focus on this case and how other wealthy and influential people are taking over and controlling the media. Another story in focus is about the Las Vegas Review-Journal and how it was bought by billionaire businessman Sheldon Adelson. Adelson owns and influences much of life in Las Vegas and decided to buy the Las Vegas Review-Journal, but he hid the purchase from the people working at the paper. Adelson then tried to control what was published in the newspaper by restaffing it, and it worked.
These stories show how it is becoming commonplace for people with money, resources, and time to plow through the media by running it into the ground, as Thiel did with Gawker, or how media can be bought and controlled, as with the Las Vegas Review-Journal. The documentary is well-researched and edited, making viewers understand what is at stake with the press and how its freedom is in balance.
Rating 8/10
