A timely, riveting documentary that unfurls with the energy and suspense of a thriller, BAD PRESS—winner of the Sundance Film Festival’s U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award for Freedom of Expression—offers unparalleled insight into the inner workings of Indigenous politics.

Imagine you lived in a world where your only reliable news source became government propaganda overnight. That’s exactly what happened to the citizens of the Muscogee Nation in 2018. Out of 574 federally recognized tribes, the Muscogee Nation was one of only five to establish a free and independent press—until the nation’s legislative branch abruptly repealed the landmark Free Press Act in advance of an election.

 Refusing to accept this flagrant act of oppression, one defiant journalist, Angel Ellis, charges headfirst into a historic battle against her tribal government’s censorship and corruption.

Directed by Rebecca Landsberry-Baker and Joe Peeler

Rebecca Landsberry-Baker is an enrolled citizen of the Muscogee Nation and the executive director of the Indigenous Journalists Association. She is a recipient of the 2018 NCAIED “Native American 40 Under 40” award and was selected to the Harvard Shorenstein News Leaders Fall 2022 cohort.

Joe Peeler is a Sundance award-winning director and editor whose work has appeared on NETFLIX, HBO, FX, ESPN, Hulu and CBS. Joe edited Lucy Walker’s documentary short THE LION’S MOUTH OPENS, which was shortlisted for the Academy Awards. You can find him writing about the craft of film editing at SPLICE WORLD on Substack.