September 5

As Mark Spitz wins gold, Roone Arledge plans to dramatize the competitor's reaction and segue into a broader discussion of the Holocaust and Nazi Germany during a live interview. The move is framed as a shift from pure sports reporting to emotionally charged storytelling. The team anticipates that emotions will captivate the audience.

Marvin Bader questions the decision to foreground politics and history in the live coverage. Arledge defends the move, arguing that emotional storytelling drives engagement. The tension foreshadows a clash between journalistic ambition and ethical concerns.

Gunshots are heard during the night as police broadcasts roll in. Marianne, the local translator, helps the crew understand that a terrorist attack is unfolding. The Black September group has taken Israeli athletes hostage and demands prisoner releases.

Geoffrey Mason shifts the focus from sports to the hostage crisis, reorganizing the crew for live coverage. He negotiates a more advantageous time slot and even fabricates access to the restricted Olympic village to secure footage. The team trades confidence for urgency as the situation deepens.

Mason and the team push boundaries to obtain footage, including creating forged identification to enter the village. They believe the escalating crisis will provide a gripping, ratings-driven story. Bader remains wary that real lives are at stake.

As negotiations fail and police missteps unfold, the crew becomes more competitive for updates, risking sensationalism. Bader warns about the consequences of a story that could manipulate the terrorists' narrative. The mood grows tense in the control room.

The terrorists are watching the networks and notice the live coverage, undermining a rescue attempt. Authorities storm the control room and threaten to turn off the broadcast, but Mason refuses to bow to pressure. He continues reporting despite the danger of tipping off the militants.

The terrorists transport the hostages to Fürstenfeldbruck military airport. Mason sends Marianne to cover the developments, even taking sound equipment to capture potential gunfire. The crew tries to stay ahead with live updates as the operation unfolds far from the studio.

Marianne reports rumors that the hostages may be freed, a development German outlets are allegedly confirming. Bader urges caution and asks for verification before broadcasting. Mason pushes ahead with the report, noting that it is based on current sources.

Mason receives an official fax from the German chancellor claiming a rescue, prompting celebration in the studio. The plan shifts toward interviews with survivors and a victorious narrative. Bader leaves to celebrate with Arledge.

Sobered, Mason corrects the live broadcast after learning the rescue was a failure and all hostages were murdered. The studio atmosphere shifts from triumph to horror as the magnitude of the loss sinks in. Arledge attempts to acknowledge the error, while Marianne mourns the lives lost.

The team heads home, but Mason lingers to inspect the victims' photos on the bulletin board in the studio. The tragedy exposes the cost of chasing a scoop and the human toll of real-world events broadcast live. The mood is sober and reflective as reports close.

A closing title card notes that the attack marked the first time such an event was broadcast live, watched by roughly 900 million people. The program is framed as both a milestone in news history and a cautionary tale about ethics and sensationalism. The film leaves a lasting impression of the price of live, unfiltered coverage.