Since its premiere late last year, Apple TV +’s flagship series, The Morning Show, has drawn numerous comparisons to HBO’s The Newsroom. Both shows seemingly revolve around broadcast news programs; however, on paper, they couldn’t be more different. While Aaron Sorkin’s political drama, The Newsroom, focuses on the revitalization of News Night’s journalistic integrity, Jay Carson’s The Morning Show takes place at the height of the #MeToo movement. Its timely plot follows the impact of a lead anchor’s sexual misconduct on a warm and sunny breakfast news program (obviously inspired by Matt Lauer’s The Today Show debacle).
The Newsroom—which ran for three seasons (2012-2014)—was timely in its own way. That said, each production serves up a mixed dish of finger-waving commentary on the futile pursuit of truth. They’re high-stakes television that repeatedly slaps you in your smug and complacent face. In the latest edition of Mandatory TV Battles, we pit The Newsroom and The Morning Show against one another to see which handles its existential angst best.
Cover Photo: Home Box Office (HBO)/Apple TV+
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Since we’re essentially forced to compare premiere seasons, The Morning Show wins. The Newsroom is certainly entertaining but The Morning Show is more nuanced (at times), focused, and its cast knocks it out of the recording studio. It’s still very flawed, but it sets out to convey a certain message and does so with pinpoint precision. It will be interesting to see what the show becomes in its second season. With everything that has happened this year, The Morning Show has an opportunity to say even more. Hopefully, it becomes a hybrid of itself and The Newsroom—following the redirection of a network in our contemporary landscape.
Overall Winner: The Morning Show
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Newsroom v Morning Show
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Pilot
Everyone remembers The Newsroom’s pilot. The series’ opening scene, where Jeff Daniels’ Will McAvoy participates in a debate, has millions of views on YouTube. What makes this opener so gripping is McAvoy’s candor when answering the question “What makes America the greatest country in the world?” McAvoy’s simple answer: it’s not anymore (while passionately detailing how we have lost our way). This scene helped The Newsroom enter entertainment’s lexicon by saying all the things we’re all feeling/thinking (and still are). The subsequent drama, including McAvoy’s shifting team of misfits and newfound desire to be honest (with the help of ex-lover/executive producer Mackenzie MacHale and director of the news division Charlie Skinner) is more than enough to call this pilot a winner.
The Morning Show, on the other hand, comes out of the gate with a pretty dull episode. There’s a 3 a.m. phone call bringing the news of Mitch Kessler’s (Steve Carrell) firing, we meet the EP, Chip (Mark Duplass), co-anchor Alex Levy (Jennifer Aniston), the enigmatic co-head of the network, Cory Ellison (Billy Crudup), and a scrappy field reporter, Bradley Jackson (Reese Witherspoon). It’s a star-studded, well-acted, and soapy start that just isn’t as memorable as The Newsroom’s bombshell beginning.
Winner: The Newsroom
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Topics
The Newsroom is exactly what it sounds like: a series that takes a behind-the-scenes look at a fictional cable news channel (in this case, Atlantis Cable News). Actual (real) news events are interwoven into the corporate, commercial, and personal drama at ACN. The Newsroom’s first season covers everything from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill to the killing of Osama Bin Laden. The Newsroom's ambition sees it try to touch on a multitude of events and the issues surrounding them. The Morning Show, which takes place in and around a newsroom, is about corporate agendas ("the boys club") and sexual misconduct in the workplace—the "news" takes a backseat.
Winner: The Newsroom
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Cast
Jeff Daniels is amazing as The Newsroom’s Will McAvoy. We know this. Emily Mortimer, Sam Waterson, Jane Fonda, John Gallagher Jr., Thomas Sadoski, Allison Pill, and Dev Patel produce solid performances as well. However, The Morning Show has three Jeff Daniels.
Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon are at the top of their game here. They’re fucking rock stars. As The Morning Show’s premiere season goes on, and the material gets better, both actresses display some serious emotional complexity. Nothing about their performances (or Billy Crudup’s surprising turn as Cory Ellison) is one-note. And yes, Steve Carell is great here too...it’s just a little unsettling seeing him play such a (charismatic) asshole.
Winner: The Morning Show
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Soapboxing (Or Lack Thereof)
Trying to decide which one of these shows is less sanctimonious is as subjective as an opinion itself. Both attempt to indicate a right and a wrong way to approach certain subjects. So, which is less preachy? On the one hand, you have The Newsroom—which often feels like the soapbox on which Aaron Sorkin stands and screams at the world; calling it divisive, unreasonable, and dishonest. This isn’t to say that Sorkin doesn’t make solid points in The Newsroom. However, the series’ long monologues tend to overshadow...everything else. On the other hand, Jay Carson’s The Morning Show feels much more organic. It certainly has a message/agenda, but it makes its points gradually instead of constantly shoving Shakespearean cynicism down your throat.
Winner: The Morning Show
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Writing
This is where things get tricky. Aaron Sorkin is arguably one of the greatest writers in Hollywood. His dialogue is always witty and never underestimates the audience’s intelligence. In a time where mediums tend to dumb everything down and take very little chances, this is not only refreshing but crucial. There are moments in The Newsroom that get so close to touching The West Wing’s earnest irreverence that it's infuriating when it doesn’t. Still, the scenes and interactions in The Newsroom are almost always entertaining (in a romanticized way). The show gives its characters opportunities to shine in the moments where real-life news outlets did not (which is extremely satisfying).
The Morning Show drags at times; its characters never seem to be able to find the right words (except for Billy Crudup’s Cory Ellison). Perhaps this is by design; allowing the characters to feel authentic unlike The Newsroom’s hyper-intelligent team of misfits. however, you just can’t beat The Newsroom’s infinitely quotable script. Unfortunately for The Newsroom, the sum of its parts is never greater than its, well, parts (see next point).
Winner: The Newsroom
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Plot
The Morning Show is just more focused. Plain and simple. It starts slow, but once it gets going, there’s no stopping it. It uses Mitch Kessler’s sexual misconduct and Bradley Jackson’s spontaneous and controversial hiring as a springboard to explore the nefarious activity happening behind the scenes. We learn more and more as the season goes on and characters like Alex Levy and Charlie Black have to confront their culpability. While The Morning Show only gets better in its first season, The Newsroom, with its contrived will they/won't they romances, never knows exactly what it wants to be (other than a commentary on honest journalism). Some of The Morning Show’s writing may come off as vain, but the show has direction. The Newsroom often buckles under the weight of its aspirations and discourse.
Winner: The Morning Show
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First Season
The Newsroom’s first season comes full circle when Will McAvoy makes the same girl from Northwestern ask him “What makes America the greatest country in the world?” during an internship interview. He responds, "Hire her." It’s a poignant and charming moment that finds its network in a place the audience is proud of. However, The Newsroom’s characters still beg to be developed. There almost had to be a season two (where the show got arguably much better).
The Morning Show drops its respective mic. After spending its entire season building towards various revelations and developing its characters, The Morning Show’s 10th episode, “The Interview,” doesn’t pull any punches: a major death, botched secret interview, and fistfight all precede the moment where Alex Levy and Bradley Jackson call out their network head for covering up sexual misconduct for years (on air). When the plug is pulled on their broadcast, The Morning Show accomplishes what it set out to do. Its first season feels like a complete story. It tactfully handles the complexities of a very sensitive topic in what feels like the honest/right way.
Winner: The Morning Show
