We all learned that it’s good to have a free press, but most of us rarely consider why it’s good, why we should fight for it, and how to do so, in the first place. Bad Press tackles one such fight, specifically the battle for free press in the Muscogee Nation, and while it only tackles government control specifically, the documentary is a reminder of how fragile press freedom can be, broken in mere minutes, and how long and difficult it is to get it back. Has Bad Press figured out how to bring back free press? Perhaps, though the struggles were made much more murky with the way fake news outlets take advantage of the narrative, the way politicians keep their silence to maintain innocence, and the way the masses could have voted against it. But nonetheless, Bad Press was a necessary reminder of how much could have been lost.
"Capture(s)—several times—that pit in your stomach feeling that occurs when you're watching the votes roll in for an election that has steep ramifications depending on its outcome."
— Marya E. Gates
"Like the political skullduggery it depicts, “Bad Press” tells a tale we’d love never to see played out again— yet watching it is undeniably entertaining."
— Dennis Harvey
When the Muscogee Nation suddenly begins censoring its free press, a rogue reporter fights to expose her government's corruption in a historic battle that will have ramifications for all of Indian country.
When the Free Press Act was repealed in 2018, three years after its passage, and just before the tribe’s election, Mvskoke Media, the Muscogee Nation's sole news outlet, went back under control of the tribe’s chief and cabinet. Because of this, veteran reporter Angel Ellis fights to protect press freedom through a historic constitutional referendum.
The ending – the subtitles hit home as to how much work still needs to be done, but Angel smiling with the rainbow makes it feel like it’s still possible.
Defend press freedom!
Sundance
1 nomination
