Robert Scheer

"Age hasn’t mellowed Robert Scheer, the founder of Ramparts magazine and later TruthDig website, who built an original muckraker career while writing well-reported investigative pieces for the Los Angeles Times. This documentary is a rich tribute that shows how a professional lifetime devoted to asking and answering 'who’s getting screwed, and who’s doing the screwing?' remains extremely relevant even today."

"Robert Scheer: Above the Fold is a crucial intervention in our contemporary debates over journalism and the truth, over America's imperial wars abroad, over civil rights and race, and over social justice and corporate influence. It is a riveting exploration of the life and work of perhaps the most prominent, passionate and consistent Left journalist in modern American history, stretching back to the Free Speech movement at Berkeley and anti-Vietnam War activism and forward to our contemporary crises."

"Young journalists who watch this enthralling portrait of the legendary Bob Scheer will doubtless experience two warring emotions: awe and envy. Awe at what Scheer has been able to accomplish over a career that took him from the Bronx to Berkeley, where he swept the floors at City Lights, hobnobbed with the Beats, demonstrated against HUAC and the Vietnam War, ran for Congress, and exposed enough wrongdoing at Ramparts to earn that magazine its place in the journalism pantheon. Envy not just at the places he’s been, the sights he’s seen, the famous names he’s interviewed—and skewered—but also at the sheer joy of it all, and the fact that even inside the unwaveringly respectable columns of the Los Angeles Times Scheer never lost his raffish flair, his tummler’s razor sharp wit, and his unrelenting hostility to all forms of arbitrary authority. Scheer never forgets the reporter’s primary duty to record who is getting screwed—and who is doing the screwing. Newspaperman, polemicist, rabble-rouser, muckraker and even professor, Scheer’s story—and this film—furnish irrefutable evidence of what can happen if you tell people the truth. A vivid, entertaining tribute to a writer whose epitaph, when that time comes, ought to be: 'He never sold out.’"

“The life and professional activity of Robert Scheer are bright examples of investigative journalism in a democratic system. Through his critical and acute remarks, Sheer has offered a valuable contribution to the maturation of American democracy."

"Robert Scheer: Above the Fold is a crucial intervention in our contemporary debates over journalism and the truth, over America's imperial wars abroad, over civil rights and race, and over social justice and corporate influence. It is a riveting exploration of the life and work of perhaps the most prominent, passionate and consistent Left journalist in modern American history, stretching back to the Free Speech movement at Berkeley and anti-Vietnam War activism and forward to our contemporary crises."

"Throughout history, and especially in our current politically fraught time, young journalists and students of journalism approach the intersecting lines of reporting and activism with trepidation and confusion. This documentary not only follows the life and achievements of one of the most tenacious and forthright journalists of our time, it also tackles the delicate balance of ethics and objectivity. It explores how we balance our moral values and obligations against each other in the pursuit of truth and justice. Robert Scheer has helped define generations of journalism in various forms of media and is a beacon for those coming after. Robert Scheer: Above the Fold is a must-see documentary for all journalism and communications students and for anyone interested in the evolution of our society and the evolution of how journalists have covered it.”

"An inspiring portrait of a great American."

"This is a marvelous documentary on a great journalist. As a journalist, he has been deeply involved in a variety of media. He has written boldly and perceptively—for decades—about the most important, the most pressing issues of the time. He is a model for journalists, as Norman Lear, in deftly questioning Scheer in this documentary, brings out, and as testified to by a superb line-up of people interviewed. The documentary is well shot and edited. It brilliantly documents the highly productive life of a person who says, 'I want to be as honest as I can.'"

"This is a marvelous documentary on a great journalist. As a journalist, he has been deeply involved in a variety of media. He has written boldly and perceptively—for decades—about the most important, the most pressing issues of the time. He is a model for journalists, as Norman Lear, in deftly questioning Scheer in this documentary, brings out, and as testified to by a superb line-up of people interviewed. The documentary is well shot and edited. It brilliantly documents the highly productive life of a person who says, 'I want to be as honest as I can.'"

"Throughout history, and especially in our current politically fraught time, young journalists and students of journalism approach the intersecting lines of reporting and activism with trepidation and confusion. This documentary not only follows the life and achievements of one of the most tenacious and forthright journalists of our time, it also tackles the delicate balance of ethics and objectivity. It explores how we balance our moral values and obligations against each other in the pursuit of truth and justice. Robert Scheer has helped define generations of journalism in various forms of media and is a beacon for those coming after. Robert Scheer: Above the Fold is a must-see documentary for all journalism and communications students and for anyone interested in the evolution of our society and the evolution of how journalists have covered it.”

"Robert Scheer provides a critical and timely antidote to the rise of fake news and the demagogues who fan its flames. He reminds us that the best journalism is fearless, compassionate, and uncompromising. Scheer's integrity and commitment to social justice will inspire a new generation of journalists. He is the embodiment of speaking truth to power.”

“Young journalists who watch this enthralling portrait of the legendary Bob Scheer will doubtless experience two warring emotions: awe and envy. Awe at what Scheer has been able to accomplish over a career that took him from the Bronx to Berkeley, where he swept the floors at City Lights, hobnobbed with the Beats, demonstrated against HUAC and the Vietnam War, ran for Congress, and exposed enough wrongdoing at Ramparts to earn that magazine its place in the journalism pantheon. Envy not just at the places he’s been, the sights he’s seen, the famous names he’s interviewed—and skewered—but also at the sheer joy of it all, and the fact that even inside the unwaveringly respectable columns of the Los Angeles Times Scheer never lost his raffish flair, his tummler’s razor sharp wit, and his unrelenting hostility to all forms of arbitrary authority. Scheer never forgets the reporter’s primary duty to record who is getting screwed—and who is doing the screwing. Newspaperman, polemicist, rabble-rouser, muckraker and even professor, Scheer’s story—and this film—furnish irrefutable evidence of what can happen if you tell people the truth. A vivid, entertaining tribute to a writer whose epitaph, when that time comes, ought to be: 'He never sold out.’"

“The life and professional activity of Robert Scheer are bright examples of investigative journalism in a democratic system. Through his critical and acute remarks, Sheer has offered a valuable contribution to the maturation of American democracy."

"I am so grateful that there’s finally a documentary devoted to Robert Scheer, whose is one of this country’s foremost truth seekers and truth tellers, and as close to a national treasure as one could find. His life and work threads the needle from the hard knocks and radicalism of old New York, through the 1960s movements that defined the New Left, to the institutions of alternative media and journalism that have consciously pushed against the grain for the past fifty years. Through interviews and the use of archival multimedia, the film offers an insightful view of Scheer’s intertwined career as a political activist and journalist that rightfully teaches viewers about the Vietnam War, social movements of the 1960s, the importance of Ramparts magazine, and the breadth of Scheer’s work as an influential international correspondent and acclaimed news reporter. Robert Scheer is someone who reminds us that it’s both possible and crucial to do politically engaged journalism that truly matters, without fear or compromise. I hope this film introduces him to new generations of rabble rousers and boat rockers who will heed the call and take up his mantle.”

"Robert Scheer provides a critical and timely antidote to the rise of fake news and the demagogues who fan its flames. He reminds us that the best journalism is fearless, compassionate, and uncompromising. Scheer's integrity and commitment to social justice will inspire a new generation of journalists. He is the embodiment of speaking truth to power.”

“Robert Scheer is one of the best reporters of our time.”

"An inspiring portrait of a great American.”

"For more than four decades, Robert Scheer has been a 'citizen journalist’ in the purest sense. As a fearless investigator and interviewer, Scheer embodies the virtues of citizenship: questioning authority, writing the truth about power, championing dissent, provoking and inspiring readers, colleagues and students. This film tells the story of a journalist who bore witness to his times and also shaped them, as a progressive activist in California, editor of the landmark magazine Ramparts, a newspaper columnist and founder of truthdig.com. Scheer has taught journalists how natural curiosity about people and the world can lead to a career of pursuing the truth about 'who’s getting screwed and who’s doing the screwing.' An important and timely film for all Americans today.”

“Robert Scheer is one of the best reporters of our time.”