REVIEW: ‘Scandalous: The Untold Story of the National Enquirer’
Photo: National Enquirer Publisher Generoso Pope Jr. poses with a copy of the photo of Elvis Presley. Photo courtesy of Magnolia Pictures / Provided by Magnolia press site with permission.
Scandalous: The Untold Story of the National Enquirer, directed by Mark Landsman, is a fascinating look at tabloid journalisms and American society over the past 60 years. The focal point is the newspaper National Enquirer, which has been predicting celebrity breakups and spotting UFOs in the sky for decades.
Behind the exaggerations and celebrity news is an interesting story of how this publication was influenced by society and also influenced society in return. There are sections about Elvis Presley’s death, the O.J. Simpson trial, the scandal involving Sen. Gary Hart and the ascendancy of President Donald Trump.
To build this 97-minute narrative, Landsman smartly employs the help of not only Enquirer staff members but also journalists (dare I say, more respected journalists), who can provide context and credibility on the rise of this publication. Most notable amongst the talking heads is Carl Bernstein, whose reportage with Bob Woodward exposed the Watergate scandal.
There is much time spent on the leadership of previous owner Generoso Pope Jr., who ran the Enquirer for several years and also relocated its headquarters to sunny Lantana, Florida. Like any good story for the Enquirer, there are also questions on whether Pope had ties to organized crime at the time of taking over the publication, but there’s no denying he found success. The Enquirer’s circulation sky-rocketed and became a household name under his management.
This reporter didn’t buy the argument that the newspaper was an unsung hero of journalism for its highly influential years up to and including the Simpson trial. There’s no doubt that readership ballooned, and the hard-working reporters chased many leads and landed many exclusives. The problem was that they admittedly played fast and loose with many ethical guidelines, including the paying of sources and the intrusion into celebrity’s private lives.
The documentary, for example, showcases the Enquirer’s photo of Presley in his casket and how the publication employed the help of a distant relative of the singer to secretly capture the image. Although this may be presented as a water-cooler tale with high fives and mentions of “Do you remember when…,” the whole ordeals comes off slimy and dirty, and it’s difficult to view Presley’s dead body with anything but sadness for the obvious privacy that is being betrayed.
There are interesting arguments made about the mainstream press becoming more like the Enquirer, especially after the Hart scandal broke and a politician’s private life now seemed to be fair game. Also, there’s something to be said when the Enquirer tried to go legit and offer extensive reporting on the Simpson trial, including a revelation that the ex-football player actually wore shoes he denied wearing. There was apparently solid journalism behind the unethical choices the newspaper made.
The Princess Diana segment is a welcome conversation to have because it goes right to the heart of the paparazzi problem and how much is too much when it comes to reporting on royal family members and celebrities. The National Enquirer received the blame following Diana’s death, but honestly many publications, even the well-respected ones, have played the celebrity game before (and still do). If anything, Scandalous not only shows this “untold story” of the Enquirer, but it also holds up a mirror to American journalism in the non-tabloid papers. It’s not always a pleasant image that emerges.
Then, there’s Trump. He has been a frequent subject in the pages of the publication ever since he was a real-estate mogul who posed for pictures with his first and second wives. The press for Trump was overly positive, and when he became the Republican candidate for president, the publication continued its effusive praise — much to the chagrin of some old-timer Enquirer journalists who said this type of political reporting was beneath the publication. There’s even mention of the curious incident involving the exposé on Amazon’s Jeff Bezos and how the newspaper has cozied up to the Trump campaign (and then the Trump administration).
One doesn’t have to agree with all of the talking heads in the film to enjoy Scandalous. There are so many interesting considerations to be had and the debate about the legacy of this American publication is a great debate to have. This reporter takes more stock in The New York Times, Washington Post and other like-minded institutions of American journalism, but there’s no denying that this tabloid has impacted culture, politics, the celebrity world and society, all the while attracting the eyes of grocery shoppers thinking about a last-minute purchase at the cashier.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Scandalous: The Untold Story of the National Enquirer (2019). Directed by Mark Landsman. Running time: 97 minutes. Rating: 
