(upbeat music)
- Behind me is Third Avenue Presbyterian,
one of the oldest structures here
in the lower east side of Manhattan.
But that may not be the case for much longer.
According to church elders,
this property is one of several early 20th century.
Hey man, do you mind?
We're kinda tryna do the news here.
- Okay. - Okay.
- Which is exactly why a group of locals
are doing everything they can to save it,
and it's beautiful stained glass windows.
Which are actually older than the church itself.
(glass crashing)
Ay! (beep) (beep).
What are you still doin' here?
- I'm watchin' the news.
- Oh, oh, you think my job's a joke?
(drunkard muttering)
Do you think any old schmo can talk into a microphone?
No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Seriously.
I have 12 years of professional journalism,
and even years longer than that of--
Stop it-- Of journalism school.
Okay? Do you wanna try?
You should take it.
You know what?
(glass crashing)
(woman laughing)
Ay! (beep) (beep).
(laughing)
(video playing in background)
Wait, wait.
(glass crashing)
Ay! (beep) (beep).
(woman's laughing intensifies)
- Lord, Tucker, this is the funniest thing
I've seen all week.
- Thank you.
You know what?
(glass crashing)
- What was that?
- Oh, that was the stained glass window at the church.
- So, you were fired immediately after this?
- Oh, I think it was sometime
after the video was viewed a million times on YouTube.
- Well, it was quite the conniption.
- Conniption?
- That's like a hissy fit. Only worse.
- Okay. What you don't see is the guy in there-
- Honey, you do not need to explain yourself.
That guy was more annoying than a sticky booger.
- Actually, I would love to know what you don't see.
- Let me tell you what I do see.
I see a reporter with charisma, passion, and what I assume
is just a class C misdemeanor on his record.
- Oh, and I have 15 years experience
in broadcast journalism, 11 local Emmys,
and this face was on a billboard in lower Manhattan.
- Now you're all the way down here,
lookin' for a job in the smallest news market
in the country.
- This was the smallest?
I didn't know that.
But there's something that I know a thing or two about.
Heart.
And I think that this station might be ranked first
in that category.
- That's what I've been tellin' 'em for years.
- We're your last choice, aren't we?
- I'm gonna be honest with you,
because that's what a journalist does.
I never thought I'd be down here.
I always dreamed to be an elite anchor out there
on the edge of breaking news,
making sure my viewers had the facts
and the knowledge they need to be informed citizens.
But you know what I realized?
Doesn't matter where I am.
And I'm not talkin' about behind a desk
or out there in the field,
I'm talkin' about something bigger.
Journalism. Big J journalism.
See, I believe that the job of the journalist
is the exact same no matter where you are.
And it doesn't matter if you're up in New York
or down here in...
- Burndale.
- Burndale, Mississippi.
Alabama.
- Well, bless your little heart.
- Thank you.
(offkey upbeat music)
- Well, Tucker, when can you start?
- What? - What?
- Today works for me.
- Today? Can we even do that?
I don't have any paperwork or background checks.
I don't even have a desk ready for him.
- I'm sure Tucker won't mind.
- Not at all.
- See, he's not gonna call the union on us.
- They won't answer my calls if I did.
- Well, Tucker, welcome aboard.
Hannah, show Tucker around the building
and introduce him to everyone.
(upbeat clicky music)
- This is the conference room.
(paper rustling)
These are the bathrooms.
If you use the second stall,
be sure to hold the lever down for at least three seconds
or it won't flush.
That was Nicholas. He does sports.
(toilet gurgling)
This is the break room.
If you leave food in here, put your name on it.
This is Greg. He does weather.
- Hey. Your name isn't Coleman, is it?
- Hey, is there a reason you're movin' so fast?
Thought people down here move a little slower.
- You mean things move slower?
- Yeah, you know, like in the movies.
Everybody in the south likes to take their time.
Likes to talk a little slower.
- Sit on porches.
- Rockin' back and forth, drinkin' sweet tea.
- Probably with their shoes off.
- And there's always banjo playin'.
- It's like Mama always said,
"Life is like a box of chocolates."
- Never know what you're gonna get.
- You've got us all figured out.
Now you're all set to meet the rest of the team.
Let me just make sure they're ready first.
Hey, y'all got your shoes on?
We got company over.
This here's Tucker Hayes. He's our brand new reporter.
- Hey Forrest.
(woman laughing)
- Tell them hello, but remember to talk real slow.
- Hey. I'm sorry about, you know.
- That's Bill, our lead anchor
behind what appears to be last week's newspaper.
- Dadgummit.
- This is Amy. She covers the news desk.
- Hey, you wouldn't happen to be interested
in buyin' a butt, would you?
- A butt?
- It's a Boston butt fundraiser for her son's football team.
- They're already smoked.
- He literally just got here, Amy.
- So just one then.
- And this is- - I'm Lori Caldwell.
Lead anchor and wife to Pastor Jeremiah.
Would you mind me askin'?
Have you found a home church yet?
- No. I'm agnostic.
- Well, regardless of your denomination
you are always welcome at Collision.
- Collision?
- Well yes, honey.
It's only the largest non-denominational church in Burndale.
- It's a dang laser light show with guitars.
- We're a little too contemporary for Bill.
- Sing from the hymnal, you dang heathens.
- Hey Danny, there you are.
Come here, there's somebody I want you to meet.
- Hey there. Tucker Hayes.
- Oh, hey. Danny Denny.
- Danny Danny?
- Oh no, just one Danny.
The other's Denny. Like the restaurant.
The one with the breakfast, the baseball one.
- All star special?
- No, that's waffle house.
- The old timer?
- That's Cracker Barrel.
- Breakfast is called breakfast.
- Oh, Bill.
- Bill shut up.
- I got food poisoning there once.
- Okay. Well, it's good to meet you, Danny.
Good meeting everybody.
You guys should gimme your Twitter handles,
I'll give you guys a follow.
- I just do the Facebook, sweetie.
- Conway Twitty's dead.
- No, Twitter. What's your username?
For the app. Called Twitter.
- I never heard of it.
- Really? You should get on there.
It's how you speak directly to your community,
plus you'll get the news a whole lot faster
than waiting on that newspaper to show up.
Hey, lemme show you.
Okay.
- Since when did you get a cell phone?
- Well, my kids got me one
so I could do the faces thing on my babies.
- Well, I'm off.
- Where ya headed?
- I got the Mason Reed interview.
- That's fantastic.
Amy's gotten five more calls about her since this morning.
You know what?
Scrap the package, let's do the interview live on the six.
- Okay.
- Well I'll be. They've even got the Pope on here.
- You'll be out all day, right?
- Well, the interview's at 6:20 and it's a 20 minute drive.
- Hey Tucker, come here.
Why don't you tag along with Danny today?
He's just landed an interview
with Burndale's newest entrepreneur.
- Ah, sure. I love a good business story.
You know, I covered Wall Street once or twice in my day,
so this will be like second nature.
- No way.
- Perfect.
We'll get that paperwork filled out when you get back.
- Great. Well then let's jump to it.
- Okay.
- Danny, you've got a cord.
Wait, ugh, you're gonna get stuck in the door again.
(insects buzzing softly)
(window thumping) - Whoa.
- Who sent you?
- Danny Denny?
- That's not a name.
- Oh. I see you've met Rick.
- Captain Rick.
This is Tucker. He's our new reporter.
- Permission to board, Captain.
- Permission granted soldier.
Wheels up in five.
- Does he live in the van?
- I don't know.
- So what's the background on the interview?
- Well, I don't know much about her.
Her name is Mason.
She's got a pet fish named Fish
and her mom says her soccer team's four and one so far.
- Wait, how old is Mason?
- Eight and a half.
- Eight?
- And a half. She gets really defensive about that.
- Well, wait, but Hannah said...
I thought this was Burndale's newest entrepreneur.
- Well, that's the headline.
- What is she selling, lemonade or something?
- Yeah.
(truck rumbling)
- Pull the anchor!
- [Danny] Whoa, hey, he's not in yet!
(bright upbeat music)
- [Man] Bada bing.