This article contains spoilers from Season 2 of “The Paper.”
Launching a news outlet in the current media landscape requires several key components, including a clear vision, deep expertise, diversified revenue streams and a reliable publishing system. “The Paper,” though, found a short cut: It went to El Segundo.
In the second half of its sophomore season, the mockumentary sitcom — a spinoff of “The Office” that turns its cameras toward the staff of a struggling Ohio newspaper — introduces another newsroom into its journalistic universe. On the heels of their recent awards haul, much of the season chronicles the staff of the Toledo Truth Teller, the show’s central workplace, as they hunt for more enterprise and investigative stories to pursue in order to keep the momentum going.
Co-creator Greg Daniels says the writers took inspiration from Pat Riley, the former Lakers coach: “He wrote a book called ‘Showtime’ about the Lakers in the ’80s. And his point was the time that you win the first championship, everybody’s pulling together. He called it ‘the innocent climb.’ The really hard one is the second championship because everybody starts to think they were the reason that the first one worked, and just the difficulty of topping an emotional high like that —”
Michael Koman, the show’s other creator, adds: “Generally, running a newspaper is like pushing a boulder uphill.”
The staff’s efforts hit an impasse just as the office romance between Ned (Domhnall Gleeson), the paper’s by-the-book editor in chief, and Mare (Chelsea Frei), one of the few competent and ambitious reporters on staff, becomes a stress point. To minimize conflict concerns, Mare offhandedly volunteers to temporarily work at the Cincinnati Chronicle, the Teller’s sister paper, while some of its staff members are on maternity leave.
That leads us to the scene unfolding three floors beneath the main levels of the Los Angeles Times newsroom during an afternoon in mid-April.
Director Paul Lieberstein watches video monitors as Frei and Lovitz perform on the set of “The Paper.” When Lierberstein learned the show’s fictional Cincinnati Chronicle would film at The Times, he was expecting a different commute: “There’s the old L.A. Times building — that’s where I thought we were going. I put into the map and was like, ‘What? Where is this taking me?’ But it’s an incredible space here.”
(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
Dozens of “staff members” fill rows of desks in the bullpen — some clack away on keyboards, others have phone receivers sandwiched between their head and shoulders while taking notes. Jon Lovitz, playing a jaded veteran reporter named Todd who has serious opinions on sandwiches, is thumbing through his phone on a couch in a communal area where a sign hangs with an envelope reading: “The Bull— Envelope,” a repository for bad ideas that could very well be found in any newsroom. Off to the side, an idle editor (Matt Braunger) takes in the eye-level view of vehicles skittering down the interstate just outside. This is the Cincinnati Chronicle.
“It’s like we’re seeing what Mare’s life could be like if she went somewhere big,” Frei says between filming of Episode 7, which tracks Mare’s acclimation to her new gig and rumors about her involvement with a boss. “But what you realize is that every newspaper is struggling with the same things.”
Tucked just south of the 105 Freeway where traffic often snarls in the shadows of the Los Angeles International Airport and its steady rhythm of soaring metallic glints in the sky, the eight-story, midcentury building became The Times’ headquarters in July 2018. It features an open floor plan, limited traditional offices, communal hubs and privacy pods for confidential interviews or calls. The newsroom’s previous home base is a historic 1935 Art Deco landmark located in downtown Los Angeles, the neighborhood where The Times operated for 137 years since its founding in 1881.
Like any newsroom, a journalist’s desk serves as a fascinating canvas that reflects their personality and boundaries. Here, Frei points to a photo of her dog, Jerry, that’s a prop on her character’s desk. “We had a lot of fun talking about what Mare would bring to Cincinnati, which is not a lot because I think she comes into it really thinking this is temporary. I had a picture of my dog. And I always have a yellow notepad with me — I’m constantly writing in them; usually, my lines.”
(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
That’s initially where director Paul Lieberstein, a veteran of “The Office,” expected to be: “There’s the old L.A. Times building — that’s where I thought we were going,” he says during a break in filming. “I put into the map and was like, ‘What? Where is this taking me?’ But it’s an incredible space here.”
A weekend visit to The Times’ office last year by Daniels and Koman — to complete an interview and photo shoot for a story about the show’s debut season — left a lasting impression, enough to inspire the show’s writers to consider the location when they were mulling where to set another newsroom.
“I remember when you first showed us around, it was weird to be that close to the freeway,” Daniels tells me. “But it looked so good on camera with all the cars going by. It had this sense of energy and excitement. And the planes taking off. It seemed cool … We were playing Cincinnati as being a little bit bigger time than Toledo, and it definitely visually says these guys are the real deal to me.”
“It looked like this newsroom has money and ours doesn’t,” Koman adds. “That’s our story with these two newsrooms.”
Susie Mancini, the show’s production designer, says she took photos of The Times’ newsroom, including occupied and empty desks, to help the set decorator get a feel for the vibe: “I would send so many photos of the weirdest details to show that something is used by reporters — sticky notes taped to monitors, notes saying ‘Call this number!’ or stacks of folders.”
Figurines and other memorabilia at a workstation. “We do research of whichever state we’re working with — like, what are the local sports teams someone might be a fan of?” says Susie Mancini, the show’s production designer. “Greg really likes everything to be local, to have these little Easter eggs for someone that lives there.”
Sticky notes on a phone at a desk. Mancini credits the set decorators for making the workstations feel lived in: “Once they get the references, they take over the space and they write the Post-It notes and the different writings on paper. They are really, really funny and have a blast doing it. They have their own inner jokes.” (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
The Cincinnati Chronicle appears in the final four episodes of the season. The setting not only tests the show’s main romance, it also provides Mare with breathing room and an opportunity to explore her professional ambitions more seriously.
“In Toledo, she’s always been like the big fish in a small pond,” Frei says. “Even if she doesn’t admit it, I think there’s something fun about feeling like she’s in charge of herself in a way. Then to get to Cincinnati, she makes a fool of herself the first day. When I went into the writers room for Season 2, they’re like, ‘What do you want to see with Mare this season?’ Add I was like, ‘I want to see her fail.’ That, to me, is exciting.”
Still, Frei admits she had some worries about being sequestered from the main cast so soon in the show’s run. And she found companionship from Jenna Fischer, who played Pam on “The Office.”
“I was so sad about it,” Frei says. “My fiancé just kept saying, ‘You realize you’re not actually going to Cincinnati?’ But I didn’t want to be away from my friends. We’ve become so close on the show. It’s funny because I became close with Jenna — her and Angela [Kinsey] have been so great. I was doing their podcast the week that I was going to start the stuff in Cincinnati. And she [Fischer’s character, Pam] went to art school in the city [in Season 5], and she [Jenna] was like, ‘It was so sad. You just feel so isolated.’ I was like, ‘Thank you for validating this!’
“I hope we do this show forever and ever,” Frei adds. “But you never know. So it was just sad to be away from the fam for a few episodes. By the end of it, I was like, of course that needed to happen. It was so fun.”
And while “The Paper” has not yet been renewed for a third season, the season finale leaves the door open for more work hours at the Cincinnati Chronicle. It ends with Mare at a crossroads, personally and professionally.
“Mare is weighing the decision to go back to Toledo versus what Cincinnati would have to provide,” Daniels says. “I don’t think that’s an easy decision to make overnight. I think that takes a while to process.”
Greg Daniels was fooled by the transformation while visiting the fictional newsroom: “When I got there, it was a little after the morning had started, and I thanked and apologized to multiple background actors sitting at desks [thinking they were real reporters].”
(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
