Filmmaker Ben Daitz will appear in person for a post-screening Q&A. 

Written, produced, and directed by Ben Daitz and narrated by Bob Edwards

Smithsonian Magazine once asked the rhetorical question, “Can a weekly paper in rural New Mexico raise enough hell to keep its readers hungry for more, week after week?”

The Rio Grande Sun, published in Española, New Mexico, is considered one of the best weekly Newspapers in the country. Bob Trapp, the Sun’s founder, editor, and publisher, is the quintessential newspaperman—the last of a vanishing breed—a scrupulously honest, fearless, independent journalist, and a mentor to generations of young reporters.

The Sun is known for investigative reporting. The paper broke the story that its own rural community had the highest per capita heroin overdose rate in the country. It has led the fight for open records and open meetings in a county where political shenanigans are the rule.

The film follows the Sun’s reporters and editors as they write about the news, the sports, the arts, and the cultures of a large, rural county.  John Burnett, National Public Radio correspondent, reports on the Sun’s Police Blotter—”the best in the country.” The Sun’s journalists investigate the largest embezzlement in the state’s history, and the widespread use of tranquilizers in the county jail.

ABOUT THE FILMMAKER:

Ben Daitz is a physician, writer, and award-winning documentary filmmaker. His work has been shown and honored by PBS, American Public Television, multiple film festivals, and Emmy nominations. Ben is a contributing writer for the New York Times, and has written for the Atlantic Magazine. His novel, Delivery, is published by the University of New Mexico Press.