1987. Reagan is in the White House. 'Black Monday' cripples Wall Street. And 'Trash TV' takes over the airwaves. In the midst of it all, Stacy Zwardowski, fresh out of college and away from his overprotective mother for the first time, arrives at Channel 8 in Oklahoma to take a reporter's job. But before he can introduce himself, he's handed a camera, a microphone, and a brutal first-day assignment-an armed madman is shooting people at the local supermarket. "Welcome to television news!" In the beginning, he's seduced by the excitement and fame. But over time, he discovers the cutthroat world behind the glamorous façade. The infighting. The luridness. The out-and-out lies. As fires rage across the state, Stacy is launched on a gut-wrenching journey of exposition. Braving threats from green-eyed coworkers, crooked cops, deranged Klansmen, and an unknown assailant, he searches tirelessly for the truth. The truth behind a series of arsons. The truth about the people he works with. The truth at the bottom of everything he knows about himself. But is he ready for what he finds?