The Great Man

Herb Fuller dies in a car accident, triggering a major memorial project. Philip Carleton, president of Amalgamated Broadcasting Network, tasks Joe Harris with creating a sweeping memorial show, including a public viewing of Fuller's coffin. Carleton hints that Harris could become Fuller's replacement if the memorial is a success.

Harris begins assembling a plan for the memorial extravaganza, featuring the public viewing, interviews with Fuller's cast, and other friends who knew him. He coordinates with the network publicist and staff to shape the event as a televised tribute. The pressure mounts as the project becomes a test of Harris's nerve and judgment.

Harris meets Sid Moore, Fuller’s longtime producer, who promises assistance and signals that he expects Harris to succeed. Moore’s confidence hints at a subtle power play behind the scenes. Harris senses Moore’s ambition may be as much about control as about honoring Fuller.

Paul Beaseley, owner of a small Christian radio station in New England, recalls hiring Fuller for his early inspirational poetry. He later discovers Fuller’s darker side, complicating the image of the bedside confidant Fuller presented to the public.

Harris, aided by his secretary Ginny, digs into Fuller’s past and uncovers a pattern of alcohol abuse and egotistical, unscrupulous behavior. He begins to map Fuller’s relationships with people who enabled or were harmed by his behavior. The scope of the investigation widens beyond the memorial project.

Harris discovers Fuller had a relationship with singer Carol Larson and conflicts of interest with song publishers that benefited him personally. The findings threaten the public-friendly aura of Fuller’s career. Harris weighs how much to reveal on air.

Bandleader Eddie Brand records an artificially sincere sound bite praising Fuller, illustrating how the show's machinery can sanitize even difficult truths. The recording underscores the tension between image and reality in Fuller’s world.

Moore signs Harris to a contract, pulling him deeper into Fuller’s legacy and the show’s politics. Through this deal, Harris learns more about Fuller’s escapades and the power Moore wields over the narrative.

Philip Carleton privately warns Harris that Moore is duplicitous and that the network will spin Harris in a negative light if he won’t cooperate. He suggests a strategy for maintaining leverage, or risk being replaced. The warning heightens the stakes for the live broadcast.

Harris confronts the essential choice between praising the warm public image of Fuller and exposing the phony behind it. He weighs the cost of truth against the network’s expectations. The moment sets up the decision that will define his career.

During the memorial broadcast, Harris discards his prepared script and reveals Fuller’s true nature to the audience. The moment tests his nerve and marks a turning point in how the network is perceived. The viewers witness a reckoning between persona and reality.

Moore realizes Harris’s intent and rips up Harris’s contract, demanding that Carleton stop the broadcast. Carleton refuses to intervene, recognizing the potential to market Harris’s integrity. The power struggle intensifies as the live program unfolds.

Carleton reframes the broadcast by proposing that Harris’s honesty can be marketed just as effectively as Fuller’s polished image. He frames truth as a new selling point for the network. This strategic pivot reframes the event from a burial of a myth to a birth of a candid persona.

With the truth out, Harris gains credibility and the network considers him a strong candidate to carry Fuller’s legacy forward. The dramatic turn foreshadows Harris potentially becoming Fuller’s successor rather than merely replacing a manufactured star. The film closes on the possibility of principled leadership in broadcast news.