{"id":460513,"date":"2026-09-11T12:34:13","date_gmt":"2026-09-11T12:34:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/460513\/"},"modified":"2026-09-11T12:34:13","modified_gmt":"2026-09-11T12:34:13","slug":"how-the-paper-made-a-cincinnati-newsroom-in-los-angeles-for-season-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/460513\/","title":{"rendered":"How ‘The Paper’ made a Cincinnati newsroom in Los Angeles for Season 2"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This article contains spoilers from Season 2 of \u201cThe Paper.\u201d<\/p>\n

Launching a news outlet in the current media landscape requires several key components, including a clear vision, deep expertise, diversified revenue streams and a reliable publishing system. \u201cThe Paper,<\/a>\u201d though, found a short cut: It went to El Segundo.<\/p>\n

In the second half of its sophomore season, the mockumentary sitcom \u2014 a spinoff of \u201cThe Office\u201d that turns its cameras toward the staff of a struggling Ohio newspaper \u2014 introduces another newsroom into its journalistic universe. On the heels of their recent awards haul, much of the season chronicles the staff of the Toledo Truth Teller, the show\u2019s central workplace, as they hunt for more enterprise and investigative stories to pursue in order to keep the momentum going. <\/p>\n

Co-creator Greg Daniels says the writers took inspiration from Pat Riley, the former Lakers coach: \u201cHe wrote a book called \u2018Showtime\u2019 about the Lakers in the \u201980s. And his point was the time that you win the first championship, everybody\u2019s pulling together. He called it \u2018the innocent climb.\u2019 The really hard one is the second championship because everybody starts to think they were the reason that the first one worked, and just the difficulty of topping an emotional high like that \u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

Michael Koman, the show\u2019s other creator, adds: \u201cGenerally, running a newspaper is like pushing a boulder uphill.\u201d<\/p>\n

The staff\u2019s efforts hit an impasse just as the office romance between Ned (Domhnall Gleeson<\/a>), the paper\u2019s by-the-book editor in chief, and Mare (Chelsea Frei), one of the few competent and ambitious reporters on staff, becomes a stress point. To minimize conflict concerns, Mare offhandedly volunteers to temporarily work at the Cincinnati Chronicle, the Teller\u2019s sister paper, while some of its staff members are on maternity leave.<\/p>\n

That leads us to the scene unfolding three floors beneath the main levels of the Los Angeles Times newsroom during an afternoon in mid-April.<\/p>\n

\"Crew <\/p>\n

Director Paul Lieberstein watches video monitors as Frei and Lovitz perform on the set of \u201cThe Paper.\u201d When Lierberstein learned the show\u2019s fictional Cincinnati Chronicle would film at The Times, he was expecting a different commute: \u201cThere\u2019s the old L.A. Times building \u2014 that\u2019s where I thought we were going. I put into the map and was like, \u2018What? Where is this taking me?\u2019 But it\u2019s an incredible space here.\u201d<\/p>\n

(Jason Armond \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n

Dozens of \u201cstaff members\u201d fill rows of desks in the bullpen \u2014 some clack away on keyboards, others have phone receivers sandwiched between their head and shoulders while taking notes. Jon Lovitz, playing a jaded veteran reporter named Todd who has serious opinions on sandwiches, is thumbing through his phone on a couch in a communal area where a sign hangs with an envelope reading: \u201cThe Bull\u2014 Envelope,\u201d a repository for bad ideas that could very well be found in any newsroom. Off to the side, an idle editor (Matt Braunger) takes in the eye-level view of vehicles skittering down the interstate just outside. This is the Cincinnati Chronicle. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s like we\u2019re seeing what Mare\u2019s life could be like if she went somewhere big,\u201d Frei says between filming of Episode 7, which tracks Mare\u2019s acclimation to her new gig and rumors about her involvement with a boss. \u201cBut what you realize is that every newspaper is struggling with the same things.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tucked just south of the 105 Freeway where traffic often snarls in the shadows of the Los Angeles International Airport and its steady rhythm of soaring metallic glints in the sky, the eight-story, midcentury building became The Times\u2019 headquarters in July 2018. It features an open floor plan, limited traditional offices, communal hubs and privacy pods for confidential interviews or calls. The newsroom\u2019s previous home base is a historic 1935 Art Deco landmark located in downtown Los Angeles, the neighborhood where The Times operated for 137 years since its founding in 1881. <\/p>\n

\"A <\/p>\n

Like any newsroom, a journalist\u2019s desk serves as a fascinating canvas that reflects their personality and boundaries. Here, Frei points to a photo of her dog, Jerry, that\u2019s a prop on her character\u2019s desk. \u201cWe had a lot of fun talking about what Mare would bring to Cincinnati, which is not a lot because I think she comes into it really thinking this is temporary. I had a picture of my dog. And I always have a yellow notepad with me \u2014 I\u2019m constantly writing in them; usually, my lines.\u201d<\/p>\n

(Jason Armond \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n

That\u2019s initially where director Paul Lieberstein, a veteran of \u201cThe Office,\u201d expected to be: \u201cThere\u2019s the old L.A. Times building \u2014 that\u2019s where I thought we were going,\u201d he says during a break in filming. \u201cI put into the map and was like, \u2018What? Where is this taking me?\u2019 But it\u2019s an incredible space here.\u201d<\/p>\n

A weekend visit to The Times\u2019 office last year by Daniels and Koman \u2014 to complete an interview and photo shoot for a story about the show\u2019s debut season<\/a> \u2014 left a lasting impression, enough to inspire the show\u2019s writers to consider the location when they were mulling where to set another newsroom. <\/p>\n

\u201cI remember when you first showed us around, it was weird to be that close to the freeway,\u201d Daniels tells me. \u201cBut it looked so good on camera with all the cars going by. It had this sense of energy and excitement. And the planes taking off. It seemed cool … We were playing Cincinnati as being a little bit bigger time than Toledo, and it definitely visually says these guys are the real deal to me.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cIt looked like this newsroom has money and ours doesn\u2019t,\u201d Koman adds. \u201cThat\u2019s our story with these two newsrooms.\u201d<\/p>\n

Susie Mancini, the show\u2019s production designer, says she took photos of The Times\u2019 newsroom, including occupied and empty desks, to help the set decorator get a feel for the vibe: \u201cI would send so many photos of the weirdest details to show that something is used by reporters \u2014 sticky notes taped to monitors, notes saying \u2018Call this number!\u2019 or stacks of folders.\u201d <\/p>\n

\"Figurines <\/p>\n

Figurines and other memorabilia at a workstation. \u201cWe do research of whichever state we\u2019re working with \u2014 like, what are the local sports teams someone might be a fan of?\u201d says Susie Mancini, the show\u2019s production designer. \u201cGreg really likes everything to be local, to have these little Easter eggs for someone that lives there.\u201d <\/p>\n

\"An <\/p>\n

Sticky notes on a phone at a desk. Mancini credits the set decorators for making the workstations feel lived in: \u201cOnce they get the references, they take over the space and they write the Post-It notes and the different writings on paper. They are really, really funny and have a blast doing it. They have their own inner jokes.\u201d (Jason Armond \/ Los Angeles Times) <\/p>\n

The Cincinnati Chronicle appears in the final four episodes of the season. The setting not only tests the show\u2019s main romance, it also provides Mare with breathing room and an opportunity to explore her professional ambitions more seriously.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn Toledo, she\u2019s always been like the big fish in a small pond,\u201d Frei says. \u201cEven if she doesn\u2019t admit it, I think there\u2019s something fun about feeling like she\u2019s in charge of herself in a way. Then to get to Cincinnati, she makes a fool of herself the first day. When I went into the writers room for Season 2, they\u2019re like, \u2018What do you want to see with Mare this season?\u2019 Add I was like, \u2018I want to see her fail.\u2019 That, to me, is exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n

Still, Frei admits she had some worries about being sequestered from the main cast so soon in the show\u2019s run. And she found companionship from Jenna Fischer, who played Pam on \u201cThe Office.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cI was so sad about it,\u201d Frei says. \u201cMy fianc\u00e9 just kept saying, \u2018You realize you\u2019re not actually going to Cincinnati?\u2019 But I didn\u2019t want to be away from my friends. We\u2019ve become so close on the show. It\u2019s funny because I became close with Jenna \u2014 her and Angela [Kinsey] have been so great. I was doing their podcast the week that I was going to start the stuff in Cincinnati. And she [Fischer\u2019s character, Pam] went to art school in the city [in Season 5], and she [Jenna] was like, \u2018It was so sad. You just feel so isolated.\u2019 I was like, \u2018Thank you for validating this!\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope we do this show forever and ever,\u201d Frei adds. \u201cBut you never know. So it was just sad to be away from the fam for a few episodes. By the end of it, I was like, of course that needed to happen. It was so fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

And while \u201cThe Paper\u201d has not yet been renewed for a third season, the season finale leaves the door open for more work hours at the Cincinnati Chronicle. It ends with Mare at a crossroads, personally and professionally.<\/p>\n

\u201cMare is weighing the decision to go back to Toledo versus what Cincinnati would have to provide,\u201d Daniels says. \u201cI don\u2019t think that\u2019s an easy decision to make overnight. I think that takes a while to process.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"A <\/p>\n

Greg Daniels was fooled by the transformation while visiting the fictional newsroom: \u201cWhen I got there, it was a little after the morning had started, and I thanked and apologized to multiple background actors sitting at desks [thinking they were real reporters].\u201d<\/p>\n

(Jason Armond \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"This article contains spoilers from Season 2 of \u201cThe Paper.\u201d Launching a news outlet in the current media…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":460514,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[181565,181564,181562,181568,181566,48,52,51,47,50,49,181563,181567,346,4739,278,1860,5560,1791,18672],"class_list":["post-460513","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-los-angeles","tag-chelsea-frei","tag-cincinnati-chronicle","tag-cincinnati-newsroom","tag-daniels","tag-investigative-story","tag-la","tag-la-headlines","tag-la-news","tag-los-angeles","tag-los-angeles-headlines","tag-los-angeles-news","tag-mare","tag-michael-koman","tag-office","tag-paper","tag-season","tag-show","tag-staff","tag-times","tag-writer"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/460513","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=460513"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/460513\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/460514"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=460513"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=460513"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=460513"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}