The Fourth Estate

:

Season 1
  • Network: SHOWTIME
  • Series Premiere Date: May 27, 2018
User Score
4.2

Mixed or average reviews- based on 12 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 12
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 12
  3. Negative: 6 out of 12
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User Reviews

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  1. ColinMcKerlie
    Jun 10, 2018
    0
    It's clear how enthusiastically the political reporting staff of The New York Times embraced this opportunity to boast about their access and abilities. I've only watched the first episode and I am looking forward to the rest, but I am not expecting that anything of any great substance is going to be revealed. After all, if you are interested in The New York Times, you've read all thisIt's clear how enthusiastically the political reporting staff of The New York Times embraced this opportunity to boast about their access and abilities. I've only watched the first episode and I am looking forward to the rest, but I am not expecting that anything of any great substance is going to be revealed. After all, if you are interested in The New York Times, you've read all this material already.

    While it is of enormous importance that we have reliable news sources such as The New York Times investigating and reporting what is happening in our world, there is a whole other branch of The New York Times political staff who I suspect will have no role to play in this documentary about "the failing New York Times" in the time of Trump. Their political opinion writers really are failing.

    The news the paper is documented as reporting on the Trump administration in this series is important. What is more important is what we all should do about it - which is the domain of the op-ed pages. In the area of constructive criticism and proactive admonition, the opinion leaders on the payroll at the NYT are missing in action. They tell us every day they have read the news, no more.

    The failure of the NYT op-ed team to come up with any kind of tactics or strategy to respond to the news being reported in this documentary is the subject of my forthcoming book, "What's Wrong With The New York Times" www.whatswrongwiththenewyorktimes.net. We need questions AND answers.    … Expand
  2. LamontRaymond
    May 28, 2018
    8
    Really interesting show that confirms what many probably think about the times. The moment when Elizabeth Buemiller tells her NY team "FY" under her breath was extraordinary. The show also attempts to humanize these newspaper people by showing them calling their kids, and doing the dishes at home, etc. But in doing so, they show EB watching ""Morning Joe" before work - confirms thatReally interesting show that confirms what many probably think about the times. The moment when Elizabeth Buemiller tells her NY team "FY" under her breath was extraordinary. The show also attempts to humanize these newspaper people by showing them calling their kids, and doing the dishes at home, etc. But in doing so, they show EB watching ""Morning Joe" before work - confirms that they're all in a bit of an echo chamber. But I"m greatly enjoying the show so far.… Expand

Awards & Rankings

64
#64 Best TV Season of 2018

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
74

Generally favorable reviews - based on 12 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 11 out of 12
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 12
  3. Negative: 0 out of 12
  1. The New Yorker
    Reviewed by: Troy Patterson
    Jul 27, 2018
    70
    Because The Fourth Estate is less a documentary about the Times than a document of the struggle to report on Trump, it is--though smart and gripping--a frustrating heap of unfinished business.
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  2. Vanity Fair
    Reviewed by: Sonia Saraiya
    May 31, 2018
    65
    A lopsided new docuseries offers a limited but thrilling window into the paper of record.
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  3. IndieWire
    Reviewed by: Ben Travers
    May 29, 2018
    75
    It all can be quite thrilling: a peek behind the scenes of how things actually go down when news breaks. Garbus also gets across how hard these reporters are working and how often. .... By the time the series wraps up, it does not feel complete. Articles from the first hour start to connect with new stories surfacing in the fourth, as reporters speculate that something big is around the corner. They don’t think the story is over yet, and indeed, it isn’t.
    Read full review
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