Tell the Truth and Run

George Seldes and the American Press

Eighty years a newspaperman, Seldes was a noted foreign correspondent who became America's most important press critic. Through Seldes's encounters with Pershing, Lenin and Mussolini; the tobacco industry, J. Edgar Hoover and the "lords of the press," Tell The Truth and Run raises profound ethical, professional and political questions about journalism in America.

Seldes at age 98 is the centerpiece of the film: remarkably engaging, witty and still impassioned about his ideas and ideals. Ralph Nader, Victor Navasky, Ben Bagdikian, Daniel Ellsberg, Nat Hentoff and Jeff Cohen, among others, provide incisive commentary. Stunning archival footage and over 500 headlines, photographs and articles provide a rich historical backdrop.

Nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary. Narrated by Susan Sarandon.