Stripped for Parts: American Journalism on the Brink is coming to Enzian Theater Sunday, and director Rick Goldsmith will be on hand discuss his filmmaking approach and how he uses the camera as a tool to expose secrecy.
The documentary tackles Alden Global Capital, the hedge fund notorious for buying local newspapers, slashing staff and resources brutally, and hollowing out communities’ access to credible information and news. But while the subject matter is urgent, Goldsmith’s motivation isn’t just economic or political; it’s deeply personal.
Back in 2018, while searching for his next story, an article caught Goldsmith’s eye. “The headline was, ‘Alden Global Capital is making so much money wrecking local journalism that they may not stop anytime soon,’” Goldsmith tells Orlando Weekly. The piece, by journalist Ken Doctor, sparked what would become years of investigation and storytelling.
“It jumped out at me that, wow, what is going on that somebody’s making money wrecking local journalism as opposed to practicing local journalism,” Goldsmith says.
Goldsmith isn’t new to chasing powerful institutions. His career spans decades, and his films have earned two Academy Award nominations: Tell the Truth and Run: George Seldes and the American Press (1996) and The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers (2009). Each centers on truth-tellers and whistleblowers who put everything on the line to expose corruption.
“So all of that gets folded into the story because it’s not just, oh, these hedge funds are destroying newspapers, it’s what is the response of communities of journalists all over the country,” Goldsmith says.
Goldsmith chooses to follow characters: reporters caught in the crosshairs of financial greed. In Stripped for Parts, he highlights journalists who fought to preserve their papers from Alden’s grip, offering a front-row seat to both their battles and heartbreaks.
“So, they not only covered it, but they became part of the story. And, for me, that was an attraction to just jump in, see what this was all about, and I’m always interested in people becoming active,” Goldsmith says.
Goldsmith resists flashy editing or manipulative narration. His style is intimate and unflinching, leaving spaces for the audience to feel the urgency themselves.
In an era when journalism is under attack, from shrinking newsrooms to disinformation online to a sitting president filing a multibillion-dollar lawsuit against the New York Times only this week, Goldsmith believes filmmakers have a responsibility.
“Journalism is under attack like never before in my lifetime, and, you know, I grew up in the 1950s. There’s a lot at stake here. And if we don’t save and improve journalism, and make it true public service journalism, we might as well kiss democracy goodbye, because that’s what’s happening at this moment,” Goldsmith says.
Goldsmith hopes this screening, part of this year’s Global Peace Film Festival, sparks not just awareness but action. He knows that one documentary won’t reverse decades of decline, but it might help audiences connect the dots. (If you think it can’t happen here, you should know that Alden owns our local daily newspaper.)
“What I wanted to do was give people a feel for what journalists do every day,” Goldsmith says. “Something that will inspire people about how exciting it is. You know, how valuable journalism is, how worthwhile a profession it is to go into. And, if you’re so inclined, keep at it.”
Goldsmith will discuss Stripped for Parts at a special screening at Enzian at 11 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 21, followed by a Q&A moderated by Orlando Sentinel columnist Scott Maxwell with Judith Smelser of Central Florida Public Media.
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