Spotlight (36 page)

She’d finally had enough.

Lily didn’t appreciate blown deadlines, but what bothered her more was the tone of Jonathan’s writing. His articles often bordered on salacious, hinting at rumors rather than stating facts. They read more like a pieces for a gossip rag instead of serious film commentary, and that raised Lily’s hackles.

Lily walked into Olivia’s office waving a piece of paper. “Have you seen this?”

She must have picked up on Lily’s exasperated tone. “That doesn’t sound good. What is it?”

“I asked Jonathan for an update on what is expected to be next summer’s big action blockbuster. What I got was speculation about whether or not the costars are now in a relationship.”

Olivia sighed. “And I’m guessing you’re going to make him rewrite it?”

“Of course I am. And I’m putting him on probation. From now on, I look at all his notes, and he has to show me at least two drafts. I’m also going to run them by Devon before posting.”

Olivia grinned at her friend. “It’s about time. That boy needs someone to take him down a notch or two.”

Before calling Jonathan into her office, Lily talked to Devon and sent him samples of Jonathan’s stories. Devon readily agreed to look over his writing and gave Lily permission to handle the situation as she saw fit.

Things went smoothly during the next couple of weeks. Jonathan turned his work in on time and made sure they read like standard news pieces. Lily started to feel more confident in his abilities and, with Kathryn out covering a set visit, gave him a major assignment.

She wanted an update on the filming of the next Grady Pierce film.

Lily heard Jonathan’s vaguely irritated sigh as she started to walk away from his desk.

“What’s the problem?” she asked, turning to face him.

Jonathan cleared his throat and looked Lily in the eye. “It’s just . . . shouldn’t you be writing this? I mean you’re the one who’s
friends
with Brighton.”

She crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes. “That’s exactly why I
shouldn’t
be writing it. It would be unethical. And my personal relationships are none of your business. Understood?”

Lily took his curt nod as an answer and walked swiftly back to her office, letting out a deep breath as she closed the door.

She was still thinking about Jonathan’s comment later that night as she sat with Nate on the sofa in his outdoor living room, her legs extended over his lap. A random reality show played in the background as Lily picked at the pizza Nate brought home for dinner.

Nate placed a hand on her knee, giving it a shake. “Are you going to tell me what you’re thinking so hard about over there?”

She glanced up at him, giving him a weak smile. “Jonathan said something to me at work today, and I can’t get it out of my head.”

Nate’s forehead creased with worry. “What did he say to upset you?”

Lily leaned forward, kissing his shoulder. “It wasn’t necessarily bad. I just . . . don’t know what to make of it.”

His eyebrows rose, prompting her to continue. “I asked him to write a piece about Daniel’s film—a simple update on filming—and he asked why I wasn’t writing it since Daniel and I are friends.

“I told him I couldn’t, that it would be unethical, but his comment kind of set me on edge. It’s the first time someone’s called me out for being friends with him, you know?”

“Actually, I do know. I’ve heard that more times than I can count. ‘How can you represent someone who’s your friend?’ It’s harder than you’d think.”

“How do you handle that?”

“I try to make it as clear as possible when I talk to Daniel whether I’m speaking as his PR representative or his friend. And I think you did the right thing. That way people can’t claim that you’re giving friends preferential treatment.”

Lily nodded thoughtfully.

“It won’t be the last time this comes up, love. This industry is a lot smaller than people think. You’ll talk to the same people frequently, and it’s hard not to form friendships with them.”

“So people have accused you of giving Daniel preferential treatment?”

“Yeah. Especially because Daniel wants to keep his life as private as possible. I’ve had editors at some publications accuse me of hiding things because he is my friend. But the truth is that the information I release is always based on the client’s preference. Some are much more vocal about their lives than others, and I have to respect those wishes.”

“That makes sense. That’s the approach I try to take at work—only publishing information that comes from studios or publicists. But it’s interesting to learn, now that I’m doing this full time, the type of coverage people want to see and try to somehow balance that with the type of coverage we want to provide. I mean—it’s a film industry website, for crying out loud—not
E!
or
OK
.”

Nate grinned at the fire in her voice. “Maybe it’s time you said exactly that to your staff.”

“That’s not a bad idea. Olivia and I talked to our writers on their first day, and they seemed to understand. But a reminder couldn’t hurt.”

“Exactly. But from my perspective, you’re doing a good job. Your site is one of the few I don’t worry about for that very reason.”

Lily grinned. “Your bias is showing, Mr. Brennan.”

Nate shrugged unapologetically. “You’re much more fun to deal with than Seacrest,” he said seriously, angling his head toward the flashing television screen.

Lily couldn’t help but roll her eyes, fighting another grin. “Thanks, dear. I’m sure my staff will be thrilled to know they rank so highly.”

The next day, Olivia and Lily called their writers into the conference room.

“Okay, team,” Lily began. “After a month working in this office, we wanted to check in with you to see how things are going and also go over a few reminders.”

“That’s right,” Olivia commented. “First of all, remember your deadlines. We have them for a reason, and they are to be respected. If you repeatedly blow them off, disciplinary action will be taken. Everyone understand?”

Jonathan attempted to look contrite as the other writers nodded.

“Good,” Lily continued. “We also wanted to talk to you about the type of content you should be producing. Remember that Devon started this as a film industry website, not a gossip magazine. We refrain from commenting about personal lives, except when given an official statement from a studio, agent, or publicist. Your stories should not contain any speculation about whom actors are dating, whether or not an actress is pregnant—any of that. Any questions?”

Kathryn raised her hand. “Even if we have that information from a source we trust?”

Lily nodded. “Even then. We’ve discussed it with Devon, and he agrees. The policy is to have an official statement before anything like that goes on our site. That goes for the New York office as well.”

“But wouldn’t we get more hits—and therefore more advertisers—if we did publish those kinds of stories?” Elizabeth, one of Olivia’s writers, asked.

“To be honest, yes,” Lily responded. “Look, we all have celebrities we’re fans of, and I understand the desire to know more about them. But this website is meant to be a serious commentary on what’s going on in the film industry, and I’d like to see it stay that way.”

“Me, too,” Olivia added. “And if you have any questions about a story’s content—something you think might be a red flag—please come to one of us. We’ll be more than happy to take a look at it and talk through it with you. Those lines aren’t always clear, and we know that.”

“We want FilmInsanity.com to get hits for the right reasons,” Lily continued. “If we print sensational stories, we might have more people reading them, but we’ve also alienated people we need. Publicists might not feed us stories or even grant us interviews if we’re publishing salacious material about their clients. I’m certainly not implying that our sources dictate our content. That’s not the case at all. But just keep them in mind, because those relationships are important.”

“What Lily said is true,” Olivia said. “All we’re asking is that you write responsibly.”

Lily didn’t expect to have her own resolve tested a few days later.

It wasn’t unusual for the FilmInsanity.com staff to receive “leaked” set photos from studios. In fact, studios often disclosed these photos intentionally. Studio executives knew that the snapshots paparazzi somehow always managed to get would end up online anyway. By purchasing them and sending the photos out themselves, the studios could regulate the flow of information. It allowed them to have greater control over how the photos were interpreted.

For the most part, Lily found this practice to be rather harmless. The photos typically consisted of actors walking to or from their trailers or waiting on set while the crew set up the next shot. Every once in a while, a paparazzo captured an action star rehearsing a stunt. They were the kind of shots that ended up in behind-the-scenes books or making-of documentaries. Lily didn’t give them much thought, particularly since they came through official channels. She still looked through every photo, though, before posting them to make sure the quality was suitable and to see whether or not they needed a spoiler notice or any other special notes.

So when she opened the e-mail of photos from the set of Daniel’s latest movie, she expected to see the shots of him talking with the director and setting up an action sequence. She didn’t expect to see shots of him standing in front of his trailer with his arm around the waist of a former costar with dark blond hair.

Lily sighed. She knew their schedules allowed little room for her friends to spend time together. They thought Daniel’s closed set would give them some protection from prying camera lenses.

Apparently that’s not the case
, Lily thought as she read the message.

From: [email protected]

To: [email protected]

Subject: Daniel Brighton/Set Photos

Dear Ms. Richards:

Attached you will find set photos from the latest Grady Pierce movie, including shots of Daniel Brighton on set as he prepares for an action sequence.

FilmInsanity.com has been an avid supporter of these films, so we wanted to send you the photos first. We will be sending them to additional media outlets tomorrow. You are welcome to post them immediately.

If you have any questions or need additional details about the photos, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Sincerely,

Charlotte Davis-Meade

Director, Marketing and Communications

Reel Pictures

She closed the e-mail and walked to Olivia’s office.

“Hey, Liv, did you get the e-mail from Reel Pictures?”

Olivia nodded. “Yeah, Charlotte sent them to me, too. What do you think?”

Lily took a seat in one of the soft leather chairs in front of Olivia’s desk. “They’re fine—with the exception of a couple of shots.”

Olivia snickered. “I’m not surprised they included the photos of the two of them.”

“Me either. Nate’s hands will be full after those get out.”

“Nate knows what to do. The more important question is how do
you
think we should handle the e-mail?”

Lily thought for a moment. “I also don’t want to treat Daniel any differently because we’re friends. But I don’t want to publish the shots of him by the trailer.”

“I’m not sure you can have it both ways.”

Lily thought for a moment. “What did you think of them?”

“Honestly? I understand why you’re concerned, but those particular photos look completely innocent to me. They’re obviously not doing anything wrong. He just has his arm around her waist.”

“You’re right. But what about the responsible content talk we just had with the staff?”

“You know as well as I do that if it were anyone else, we’d publish them.”

Lily couldn’t deny the truth of Olivia’s statement. The site published plenty of photos showing would-be couples in similar circumstances without addressing personal relationships. Instead, they simply wrote that these photos came from the set. Besides, it wasn’t as if Daniel and this woman were doing anything illicit.