Just the Truth

by Gen LaGreca

  "One more word out of you and I'll ban you from these meetings!" Clark thundered, pointing at Kate. Then he turned to Laura. "Your show has to end!" he demanded.

  "It's about time we pulled the plug on her!" said Irene.

  Laura shot up and leaned across the table toward her critics.

  "Dad, Irene, Billie," she said, taking a moment to look each of them in the eye, "I feel terrible about this. I feel horrible about how the Martin crowd's hatred of me is hurting you. But I'd feel a whole lot worse if we not only had to suffer these hits, but we gave up the fight. We have to expose whatever it is they're hell-bent on us not finding out. We can't stop now! I plead with you to stand by me and fight this." She looked at three faces that remained unmoved. "What have we always been at our core? A news organization whose mission is to find the truth and to hold those in power accountable! If we quit now, it means we've lost our core."

  Clark stroked his chin. Irene pushed back a strand of hair. Billie looked blank. Only Kate showed an intensity in her eyes, as if she'd heard something important.

  "Frankly, I couldn't care less about some lofty, la-di-da truth if it brings about the demise of our enterprise," said Clark. "Does anyone else care about Laura's crusade?"

  "Not me," said Irene. "Billie?"

  "It's gone way too far," Billie said to Laura. "Remember, we're in business. We need to leave the big issues and grandiose truths to others."

  Clark stood up and leaned in to address Laura face-to-face across the table. "Just the Truth is going off the air, and you're going off with it!"

  Irene chimed in, saying, "Tonight, you can tell your audience that it's your last appearance on Just the Truth. You're moving on to exciting new activities, so you'll be passing the baton to a new host with a fresh, new show. Make it all sound nice. Then get a guest host for a couple of weeks till you assemble the new programming, and you're all set."

  "That's absurd, Irene. No one would believe it. Everyone would know we sold our souls and caved to political pressure!" Laura insisted.

  "You'll do it nonetheless," Clark demanded. "You'll replace Just the Truth with a news show that has balanced programming and a non-polarizing host. That's an order."

  Laura stared at her father, speechless.

  "That'll be the peace offering I'll take to the Feds. And we'll hope to hell I can persuade them to drop their plans to break us up!"

  Then Clark grabbed the document from the agency charged with upholding fairness, and he stormed out.

  That day, Laura remained in her office, deep in thought, leaving the show preparation to her staff. When they came in with questions—We want Senator Frank to come on for a segment on stopping crime, okay? . . . Ed Smith can do a live report from the Capitol on the education bill coming up for a vote tonight, okay?—Laura gave brief answers with the detachment of a sleepwalker.

  The pain that gripped her since the executive management meeting that morning had only grown sharper. Was it right to continue her crusade? After her management partners—her family—were adamantly against it? Was it right to risk the breakup of Taninger News? Should she relent to her family's wishes? If she gave up the SafeVote matter, the Feds would probably drop the suit against Taninger News. That was exactly what Reed Miller did, he gave in to the pressure. He averted the breakup of his company, and he ended his problems with the Feds. Look at him today; he's still wealthy and successful. . . . But is he happy? she wondered.

  Her concerned staff brought her lunch. She ate a few bites, then pushed the food aside.

  "Laura, when will we get the opening?" Tom Shiner asked.

  "It's coming," she replied.

  What would she say in her Daily Memo? Her staff was waiting to load it into the teleprompter. She felt like someone trying to decide on her means of execution. Would she face the firing squad head-on, or jump off the roof and hit the pavement facedown?

  She thought of all the people she was hurting. Even Katie! She painfully recalled the incredulity she saw on that sweet face. Then she thought of JT. He had told her that a company was like a person. To be the best that it could be, a business, like a person, had to have a purpose it aimed to achieve and the character to achieve it honorably. The purpose, he insisted, had to be something important, worthy . . . noble. She missed the proud tilt of his head when he said things like that to her. The newspaper business for him was a calling, a profound expression of both the goals he dedicated his life to and of his character—his honesty and valor—in achieving them.

  Finally, she made her decision. In the breathless pace of a high speed train, she wrote her opening monologue, the words screeching and clanging from her thoughts to her keyboard.

  Soon her words were stretching across the airwaves as she began the show.

  "Good evening and welcome to Just the Truth. I'm Laura Taninger. Previously, we've discussed methods that we believe the Martin administration is using to suppress free speech. These methods have been largely indirect—delaying the release of information harmful to the government, and using favors, threats, smears, and regulations to harm the government's critics and businesses connected with them. Then, we discussed how the administration, in effect, condones violence when it hides behind organizations tied to its ideology and policies as these groups stage riots to bully and shut down political opponents. Now, the government is taking off the mask, dispensing with the friendly face, and bypassing the use of surrogates. Now, the government is doing its dirty work in full public view.

  "The subject of my Daily Memo tonight is: Tools of Silence: Shutting Down the Free Press." The camera moved in closer to her face. Her expression was solemn, her tone serious.

  "In a flagrant abuse of power, the Bureau of Fair Trade has opened an investigation into Taninger News to determine whether it finds us to be a monopoly that needs to be broken up—due to our expansive audience reach through our electronic, print, and broadcast components. Funny, we've been in business for decades, yet Fair Trade has just now taken an interest in us. This is an attack on a successful company that serves you, our audience, and delivers its content through different modes so that you can decide how you want to receive your news. Because you select us as your news source, it's also an attack on your freedom and an attempt to hide the truth from you."

  She spoke with a growing intensity. "This latest attack of the Martin administration on Taninger Enterprises is the most dangerous because it's a direct attempt to regulate a news organization. It's an explicit attack on freedom of the press."

  She paused a moment to let the audience absorb her words.

  "To silence Taninger News, the administration is arbitrarily enforcing antitrust laws, claiming that Taninger News does not serve the public good due to monopolistic practices. So you see, it's the government, not you the public, that gets to decide which companies are and are not serving what it deems to be your interest. All I know is, we're serving you, our audience, who freely choose us over our competitors, and we have not committed any crimes.

  "Since the administration is accusing us of what they say are violations of the law, I have a few things that I accuse them of, as well.

  "I accuse the Martin administration of intentionally delaying, stalling, and ignoring valid requests for information about its new voting program because it has something to hide.

  "I accuse the administration of instigating media smears against me and my family in order to discredit me and destroy my reputation simply because I'm a political watchdog.

  "I accuse the Martin administration of pressuring a would-be client of Taninger Entertainment—the Pinnacle Awards—and causing the cancelation of a lucrative contract.

  "I accuse the administration of using unfair and capriciously enforced building regulations to thwart the opening of the new stadium for the DC Slammers, thereby causing financial losses and a public relations nightmare for Taninger Sports.

  "I accuse the administration of being the secret instigator behind the recent riots at Collier University, w
hich led to the expulsion of my sister, an honor student, who did nothing more than voice her opinion defending me in a student publication.

  "I accuse the Martin administration of doing great harm to my family as a prelude to its most brazen move yet, which is to subvert our news organization and achieve its real goal: the control of political speech.

  "I accuse the administration of engineering all of these abuses in order to silence me in my investigation of suspicious activities surrounding the SafeVote program.

  "I accuse the administration of hiding from public view a major contractor—IFT—and the nature of that contractor's work on SafeVote."

  She raised her head and took a deep breath, like someone bracing to land a final knock-out punch—or to receive one.

  "I accuse the Martin administration of tampering with the upcoming presidential election."

  Her staff in the control room looked at one other in shock. This line was not in the teleprompter. They did not know it was coming.

  "If I'm wrong, then let the administration release the documents I've petitioned, which you, the people, are entitled to have. We want those documents. We want to see what's going on during this federal takeover of our election system."

  She shook her head regretfully, like someone saddened by a weighty burden that she never wanted to carry. Her voice softened as she said, "There was once a temple called America. She stood proudly on her great pillars of freedom. Now, a corrupt and power-hungry administration is chipping away at those pillars, leaving America swaying." For a moment, she looked younger and more vulnerable as she led her viewers into her confidence. "I'm caught between the survival of my family's businesses and my controversy with the Martin administration. But as long as I'm here and you're here, my loyal audience, we'll do our own chipping away—at corruption and deceit—until we finally get to the bottom of this."

  Chapter 19

  Attorneys Sam Quinn and Emmett Wallace stood before the judge's bench in the wood-paneled courtroom. From the canvas on the wall, Lady Justice oversaw the scene. It was Monday morning, and the judge was about to give her decision in Just the Truth versus the Bureau of Elections.

  Laura Taninger sat in the spectators' section of the quiet courtroom, her auburn hair fanned over her shoulders, her brown eyes wide and intelligent, her face serious.

  The voluminous gown of Judge Marianne Rogers rustled as she entered carrying a folder.

  "Good morning, Counselors." She took her seat and opened her file on the case. "I have decided that the plaintiff's claim is just and should be fulfilled expeditiously."

  Sam Quinn's face brightened.

  "However, the Bureau of Elections does indeed have exceptional circumstances for its delay, granted its unusual workload in getting the new voting system ready in time for Election Day," the judge continued.

  Emmett Wallace's face brightened.

  "I, therefore, rule that Just the Truth has not yet exhausted its administrative remedies."

  Wallace broke into a smile while Quinn frowned.

  "I'm going to give the Bureau of Elections more time to hand over the requested documents to Just the Truth. With that, I'm dismissing the case without prejudice. If Elections is not forthcoming with the requested documents within the next ten working days, I recommend that Just the Truth seek judicial review at that time."

  Laura closed her eyes in defeat. The strike of Judge Rogers's gavel sounded like a door slamming in her face.

  Later that day, Laura watched Sean Browne's daily presidential briefing on her office monitor. He faced an array of microphones at his lectern, a cluster of camera operators hovering on one side of the room, and rows of reporters with pads on their laps sitting before him.

  After reviewing the president's itinerary and various news items of the day, he opened the briefing up for questions. He looked as if he dreaded it, but knew he had to call on Vita Simpson.

  "Sean," Vita began in her spirited tone and self-confident manner, "as you know, the Bureau of Fair Trade has opened an investigation of Taninger News as a monopoly. The activities of Taninger News have been going on for years, yet just now, when Laura Taninger has voiced persistent criticism of SafeVote, Fair Trade decides to take this action. How can this not be meant to intimidate the free press? How can this not be a serious abuse of power?"

  "Let me put your mind at rest, Vita," he said in a patronizing tone, smiling as he spoke. "The People's Manor categorically denies any association or interface with the investigative activities at the Bureau of Fair Trade." He periodically glanced down at his notes as if referring to his pre-assigned talking points. "You have to realize that the Bureau of Fair Trade has thousands of attorneys that handle a multitude of cases every year. If the practices at Taninger News are among their many inquiries, you'll have to ask Fair Trade about that. We would have no knowledge at all of their investigations."

  Laura fumed.

  The day seemed longer than usual for Laura as she turned off her computer, rose from her chair, and swung the strap of her purse over her shoulder. Her show was over for the night, and her staff was leaving. She waved to her producer Tom Shiner as he headed out of the control room. Still feeling the pain that had gripped her three days ago—when she had learned that the Bureau of Fair Trade was suing Taninger News—she closed the door of her office and slowly, dejectedly walked to the elevator.

  She hailed a cab and gave the driver her home address. Leaning back in her seat, she opened the news feed on her phone and entered James Spenser's name in a search. She could find no new information from law enforcement on his killer, who remained at large and unidentified. The media had lost interest in the case, with nary a news item about it appearing in weeks. The Taninger News reporter that she had following the case also had nothing more to report about the investigation since the first news conference the police had held shortly after Spenser's death.

  It occurred to Laura that there had been no news coverage of Kate or Collier University in the four days since the protestors had disbanded. She was relieved that Kate was no longer the target of rioters and their enablers, but the media had been almost too quiet about this issue. The People's Manor, she knew, fed their cadre of sympathetic journalists daily talking points, virtually writing these journalists' stories for them, so the administration had also gone silent on the matter. Her suspicions heightened.

  She searched the news feed for articles relating to Kate, the protests at Collier University, and the Foundation that had spearheaded the demonstrations, but she found no mentions in the main news stories of the day. Then, she looked deeper, and a small piece caught her attention.

  In an obscure section of the news feed that hardly anyone would read, Laura found a terse announcement from the People's Manor: Jack Anders, the director of the Foundation to Enrich Student Life, had been appointed the Assistant Secretary of Education for the Martin Administration.

  The next day, the airport bustled with people. Many were traveling for business that weekday in early October, walking briskly along the terminal with attaché cases or working on laptops at the gates as they waited to board. Laura headed toward her gate. When she approached it, she stopped in mid-stride, surprised to see someone holding one of those attaché cases, a man she hadn't expected to be there.

  "Sam, you're not coming!" Laura declared.

  The attorney for Taninger Enterprises looked odd without his suit and tie, dressed in jeans and ready for a long flight. Outside the terminal window, the transatlantic jetliner that Laura was about to board sat at the gate.

  "How could Sharon book you a seat without clearing it with me?"

  "Easy. I told her you authorized it," Sam Quinn replied. "And I got the seat next to yours."

  Someone listening to them argue would not have been able to determine who was the boss and who the subordinate. The combination of bluntness and affection in their voices made their argument sound more like a family squabble between a father and daughter.

  "Sam, my father
has already threatened to fire you for helping me. If he finds out you went to Ireland with me, you'll be creamed for sure."

  "I'm not letting you go there alone. Someone involved in this matter has already been killed. You're not to forget that!"

  Despite her anger, she smiled. For one disarming moment, she felt like an abandoned child who had found a protector.

  After Judge Rogers gave the Bureau of Elections more time to turn over documents, stalling the probe of Integrated Foxworth Technologies once again, Laura had arranged for a guest host to fill in for her on Just the Truth. That way she could travel to Ireland to continue her investigation in the country where the contractor's business was registered.

  When she had informed her father of her plans, he'd still been reeling from the shock of her Daily Memo on the previous Friday.

  Clark had said, "If your guest host works out, that can be our new prime-time anchor. You can stay in Ireland, marry a nice Irishman, and write me a letter now and then!"

  Only the childless Sam showed her any paternal fondness and concern.

  "Besides, uncovering information about the elusive IFT could be easier if you have an attorney with you," Sam observed.

  "I'll hire a lawyer there if I need one."

  "You have one."

  "But I don't want you to come with me."

  "JT would've wanted me to."

  "JT's been gone for two years. He's no longer your boss."

  "For thirty years before that, he was."

  With pursed lips and crossed arms, she faced the man self-appointed as her guardian and grandfather incarnate. "Sam, I'm not getting on this plane unless you leave the airport right now!"

  Shortly thereafter, Sam was sipping a cocktail onboard, and Laura was sitting next to him, reading reports from her management staff. The plane took off with the sun setting behind them. After handling a few business matters, Laura strategized throughout the flight. She had a lot to do when she arrived. Then she slept briefly before the pilot announced that they were approaching Dublin. The plane landed with the sun rising ahead of them on a new day.