As She Said is released, the 10 best movies about journalists ranked, from Spielberg’s The Post to All the President’s Men

Journalists have appealed to filmmakers for decades, appearing in movies as moral crusaders to address scandals from Watergate to Catholic priests’ paedophilia

From Hayden Christensen’s Shattered Glass to Spotlight with Mark Ruffalo, the movies in this subgenre stand out for their portrayals of the profession

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Robert Redford (right) and Dustin Hoffman in a still from All the President’s Men. Photo: Warner Bros

Published: 6:15pm, 16 Nov 2022

Journalists: there’s something very appealing about this unique breed to filmmakers. Like a more public private eye, these moral crusaders are the perfect vessel to expose wrongdoing.

Hitting cinemas this week is Maria Schrader’s She Said, the story of how The New York Times’ Megan Twohey and Jodi Kantor (played by Carey Mulligan and Zoe Kazan, respectively) helped bring down Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein for multiple sexual assaults and break the code of silence that had been surrounding his actions.

Apart from the rarity of seeing two female journalists take centre stage, it’s yet another fine example of this intriguing subgenre.

So hold the front page: here’s our ranking of the 10 best films about reporters ever made.

Mark Ruffalo (left) and Michael Keaton (second from right) in a still from Spotlight (2015).

10. The Post (2017)

“I just thought this was the right time to talk about freedom of the press, to talk about the right of free speech, [and] celebrate the hard work of journalism and news reporting,” said director Steven Spielberg when he made The Post – a perfect film for a double bill with All the President’s Men.