You probably remember the face. In George Clooney’s 2005 black-and-white masterpiece, Ray Wise plays a man who looks like he’s carrying the weight of the entire world on his narrow shoulders. That man was Don Hollenbeck. In the film, he’s a tragic subplot, the "pinko" journalist driven to the edge by the red-baiting vultures of the 1950s. But the real story of don hollenbeck goodnight and goodluck is a lot messier, darker, and more human than a two-hour movie can ever truly capture.
He wasn't just a victim. He was a pioneer.
Honestly, it’s easy to watch the movie and think of Hollenbeck as just a casualty of the Murrow-McCarthy war. But the guy basically invented modern media criticism. Before we had social media fact-checkers or late-night hosts picking apart news clips, Hollenbeck was on the radio with CBS Views the Press, calling out the biggest newspapers in New York for their bias and sloppy reporting. He was brave. Maybe too brave for his own good.
Why Don Hollenbeck Still Matters
If you've watched the film, you saw the ending for Hollenbeck. It’s a gut-punch. He turns on the gas in his Manhattan apartment and ends it all. The movie frames this almost entirely as a result of the vicious attacks by Hearst columnist Jack O’Brian. While O’Brian was undeniably a bully who used his platform to smear Hollenbeck as a communist sympathizer, the truth is that Don was fighting a war on about five different fronts at once.
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He wasn't just dealing with McCarthyism. He was dealing with a crushing depression that seemed to run in his blood—his own mother had died by suicide years earlier. He had three failed marriages behind him. He was struggling with severe stomach ulcers and a drinking habit that was spiraling.
When you see Ray Wise’s performance in don hollenbeck goodnight and goodluck, you’re seeing a man who is physically and mentally exhausted. The political climate didn't just create his problems; it acted like a magnifying glass, focusing the heat until he finally caught fire.
The Real Fight With Jack O’Brian
Jack O’Brian was the primary antagonist in Hollenbeck’s life during those final years. O’Brian was a staunch supporter of Joseph McCarthy and he absolutely loathed the liberal leanings of the Murrow crew at CBS. He spent years writing columns that called Hollenbeck a "pinko" and a "fellow traveler."
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It was relentless. Every morning, Hollenbeck would wake up and see his name dragged through the mud in the New York Journal-American.
- The "PM" Connection: Hollenbeck had worked for a short-lived, ad-free newspaper called PM. Because that paper was vocally liberal, it became a permanent stain on his record in the eyes of the anti-communist zealots.
- The On-Air Ad-Lib: One of the most famous moments in Hollenbeck’s career happened at ABC before he even got to CBS. He was supposed to start his news broadcast after a particularly annoying, jingle-heavy commercial for razors. Instead of reading the news, he told his audience, "The atrocity you have just heard is no part of this show." He was fired immediately.
- The Murrow Support: The night Edward R. Murrow did his famous See It Now broadcast taking on McCarthy, Hollenbeck was the local news anchor who followed him. He went off-script to say how proud he was of his colleague. O’Brian saw this and went for the throat the next day.
Behind the Scenes of the Film vs. Reality
George Clooney did a lot of research for the movie, but some things had to be simplified. In don hollenbeck goodnight and goodluck, Hollenbeck is often shown pleading with Murrow for more public support. In reality, Murrow and Fred Friendly did support him, but they were also fighting for their own survival.
There’s a nuance to Hollenbeck’s career that the film misses. He was a "journalist's journalist." He had covered the front lines of World War II, literally landing with the second wave of troops at Salerno, Italy. He wasn't some "effete" intellectual hiding in a studio; he was a guy who had seen the worst of the world and come back wanting to make the news better.
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His show, CBS Views the Press, won a Peabody Award. Think about that for a second. A radio show that did nothing but criticize how other reporters did their jobs was considered the gold standard of the time. He targeted the New York Times, the Daily News, and especially the Hearst papers. He made enemies because he was good at his job.
The Final Days
By June 1954, the walls were closing in. Hollenbeck had recently had an on-air "meltdown"—basically a moment of visible instability that scared the network executives. He was terrified of being fired again. He’d been fired by NBC, fired by ABC, and he felt the axe hovering at CBS.
When he died, his colleagues were devastated. Murrow, who is often seen as the stoic hero, was deeply affected. The film captures that quiet, brooding guilt perfectly.
Actionable Lessons from the Hollenbeck Story
We live in a world that feels just as polarized as 1954. If you're interested in the history of don hollenbeck goodnight and goodluck, there are a few things you can do to dig deeper into this era of journalism:
- Read the Biography: If you want the full, unvarnished truth, pick up CBS's Don Hollenbeck: An Honest Reporter in the Age of McCarthyism by Loren Ghiglione. It’s the definitive account and debunks a lot of the simpler "martyr" myths.
- Listen to the Archives: Some recordings of CBS Views the Press still exist in radio archives. Hearing his voice—measured, sharp, and incredibly articulate—makes the tragedy of his death feel much more personal.
- Watch the Documentary Clips: Look for actual footage of the See It Now episodes. Seeing the real Murrow and the real newsrooms of the '50s gives you a sense of the claustrophobic atmosphere these men worked in.
- Support Media Criticism: Hollenbeck died defending the idea that the press should be held accountable. Supporting modern outlets that focus on media ethics is the best way to honor that legacy.
The story of Hollenbeck is a reminder that the "good old days" of journalism were actually pretty terrifying. It took a massive amount of courage to stand up and say that the truth mattered more than the politics of the moment. Hollenbeck paid the ultimate price for that belief, and while the movie makes him a symbol, his real life was far more complex and impressive than any script could write.