During the build-up to the Iraq war, the US and UK were desperate to get approval for the proposed invasion from the UN, but some of the non-permanent members of the Security Council were reluctant, to say the least. The NSA requested the assistance of GCHQ in getting information on diplomats representing those countries that could be used to ‘encourage’ them to tow the line.

Citizenfour is a 2014 documentary film directed by Laura Poitras, concerning Edward Snowden and the NSA spying scandal.

The film centres around Poitras and Guardian journalist Glenn Greenwald. It shows the incredible bravery of, 29-year old, Snowden who leaves a long-term relationship, his family, his job and his country, knowing he can never return.

As a newspaper obsessive, during the UK’s Covid-19 lockdown, I’ve been compiling and reviewing a list of films set in newspapers. This is the complete list of films I’ve discovered so far.

I admit I'm stretching the definition of 'Newspaper Movie' by including The Insider.

However, it's a great film, and The New York Times does play a pivotal role in the story, so it's not entirely fallacious. The Insider has been on my list to watch for a while, and with the recent sad death of Christopher Plumber, it seemed fitting to take a look; I'm glad I did.

It's a classic. With the possible exception of Citizen Kane probably the best-known film on my list.

You've probably seen it, but trust me it warrants another look, and if you've never watched it you're in for a treat.

Michael Gallagher (Paul Newman) finds himself a front-page story in the local newspaper the Miami Standard.

The federal prosecutor suspects Gallagher knows who killed a local Union official. He leaks to Megan Carter (Sally Field) that he's investigating Gallagher for the crime, hoping Gallagher will reveal the real killer to clear his name.

In 1967, Robert McNamara, the US Secretary of Defense, formed the Vietnam Study Task Force to write an "encyclopedic history of the Vietnam War". This report, commonly known as the Pentagon Papers, detailed the systematic lying by US administrations to the American people, starting with Eisenhower, through JFK and Johnson to Nixon.

Set four-years later, The Post portrays the true story of The Washington Post publishing the Pentagon Papers.

Yes, Russell Crowe's Cal McCaffrey neatly fits the stereotype of the middle-aged, grouchy, grizzled reporter, but this a stereotype for a reason. If we're honest McCaffrey is just the sort of reporter we love to love, and Russell Crowe does it well, very well.

The film starts in 2001 with the arrival of Martin 'Marty' Baron, the new Editor of The Globe. The film hints that the paper had previously reported on the sexual abuse of children by Catholic priests, but hadn’t followed it up as Baron would have expected. Not having grown up in the shadow of the Catholic Church, the new editor lacks the reverence that holds back the native Bostonians and he prompts the Spotlight team to investigate further.

Andrew Rossi’s documentary focuses on the Media Desk at The New York Times. Shot in 2010 it covers, amongst other stories, the Wikileaks publication of the Afgan war logs. The standout star for me is David Carr, who steals every scene he’s in. Carr is irascible, smart and at times, very funny. In fact, just how I want my New York journalist to be.

Kill the Messenger is the true story of Gary Webb, an investigative journalist working for the San Jose Mercury News. Webb was passed court papers implicating the CIA in supplying arms to the Contra rebels in Nicaragua.

What is true, however, is it makes a great movie. I rode the highs and lows. Watch it and let me know what you think?