September 5 is a historical drama that explores a media event that changed the nature of news with the unfolding tragedy that occurred at the 1972 Munich Summer Olympics. The film examines how ABC News had to shift their strategy and focus from sport to real time coverage of terror.
The Central Premise of September 5
"September 5" is a fictional story set during a real life terrorist incident that shook the world during the Munich Olympics where a Palestinian militant group took Israeli athletes hostage. The film primarily explores the events through the perspective of a news crew as they had to shift from sportscasting into a crisis. It analyzes the ethical dilemmas faced when delivering live television in the wake of the incident.
Focus on ABC Sports Team
The ABC Sports studio located near the 1972 Olympic Games became a crucial point of contact when a militant Palestinian group took members of the Israeli team hostage on the morning of September 5. The film's narrative is focused around that control room where everything was occurring to give a global view.
Ethical Dilemmas of Live Coverage
The main issue surrounding the series deals with ethical responsibilities while trying to balance the desire for delivering breaking news and managing potential implications that can impact other people in harm's way. The show looks at the conflicts faced by these reporters.
Navigating Moral Challenges
"September 5" also showcases many key issues about news from deciding if camera's should point to areas that have hostages as a main issue. Other concerns are around what to show, the speed of getting breaking information out and how to portray ethical boundaries while still remaining relevant. The team must handle very hard decision during their broadcasts as they tried to navigate.
Main Characters and Their Roles
The film concentrates on the dynamic interactions of key people in the ABC news team who are responsible for making decisions during an ongoing crises.
Geoffrey Mason
John Magaro’s portrayal is a younger enthusiastic producer in the newsroom and faces many of the ethical decisions on the air with little time to prepare making his character relatable in high stress situations. He gets pulled into many conflicts that may cause harm.
Roone Arledge
The show features Peter Sarsgaard portraying a soft spoken risk taker who is very keen on being ahead of the other media. His need for making decisions are mostly geared towards ratings. His desire for the company to be first created conflict between him and the other leads of the film.
Marvin Bader
Ben Chaplin is an experienced producer who is more aware of how ethics would apply during the day with the decisions to make for news coverage. This character plays a vital role in questioning decisions with focus on not taking things as just a source of content.
Marianne Gebhardt
Leonine Benesch plays the German translator who becomes a vital part of the day. She brings a more personal view for the viewers by bringing another view to that area that was being shown. She also is used to point out some challenges that occur.
Technicalities of Early Broadcasts
In addition to all other elements, there is also an intimate display of how equipment worked in this older technology of the early 1970's when the media was not as easy to deliver. It uses very realistic methods for the technology of this era.
Practical Examples
Close up views are shown when creating caption cards to moving around slow motion film reels. It highlights all the challenges before information can reach the masses. The technical elements that require the staff to keep moving through difficult times show how different this system of creating content would have been at this time.
Themes and Their Relevance to Modern Journalism
"September 5" underscores the complex elements that exist around how news should be handled with bias in today’s climate of modern media and real life events. This highlights that ethics can easily be put on the back burner in favor of gaining recognition. It shows that the balance of providing content needs a deeper look to find where ethics play into those important aspects.
Questioning the Role of Media
By putting emphasis on real ethical dilemmas within real events it also helps question what the roles and values are for reporters who carry the weight of real news being brought into people's homes. These questions are shown through fast paced tense dialogue while real concerns get highlighted with the limited timeframe of a news event.
The Message and Reflection
The film does not claim to create an original theory however it is meant to emphasize what we as consumers sometimes do not acknowledge while highlighting those familiar struggles that those in the media space often encounter. Through an interesting blend of modern re-enactments and archive footage “September 5” shows history while raising some very key aspects in today’s world.
Key Takeaways
- "September 5" focuses on the media perspective of a real life crisis during the 1972 Munich Summer Olympics.
- The film uses a high level ensemble cast with specific characters to carry each message.
- The technology and methods from the early 70’s highlights what news was like during this time.
- Ethical dilemmas regarding real life situations take center stage and force each viewer to think what those situations really would portray.
- “September 5” explores ethical challenges still facing news media today in a rapidly changing technological world.