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The Worst Episodes of The New York Times Presents

Every episode of The New York Times Presents ranked from worst to best. Explore the Worst Episodes of The New York Times Presents!

A series of standalone documentaries powered by the unparalleled journalism and insight of The New York Times, bringing viewers close to the essential stories of...
Genre:Documentary
Networks:FXHulu

Worst Episodes Summary

"Who Gets To Be an Influencer?" is the worst rated episode of "The New York Times Presents". It scored 4.9/10 based on 64 votes. Directed by Lora Moftah and written by N/A, it aired on 6/4/2021. This episode scored 0.0 points lower than the second lowest rated, "Superspreader".

  • Who Gets To Be an Influencer?
    4.9/1064 votes
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    #1 - Who Gets To Be an Influencer?

    Season 1 Episode 7 - Aired 6/4/2021

    The New York Times follows the rise of Collab Crib, the first mainstream Black "creator mansion," exclusively documenting their whirlwind drive to achieve social media stardom in 90 days. The intimate, character-based film captures the influencers wrestling with a nagging, and profound, challenge: how can they succeed in a nascent industry that seems tilted to their disadvantage?

    Director: Lora Moftah

    Writer: N/A

  • Superspreader
    4.9/1079 votes
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    #2 - Superspreader

    Season 2 Episode 2 - Aired 8/19/2022

    Are you hesitant to get a Covid vaccine? This doctor opposes them. If you agree, he has some pet supplies he wants to sell you. Meet Dr. Mercola, perhaps the most influential spreader of Covid vaccine misinformation online.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Broken Horses
    5.1/1037 votes
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    #3 - Broken Horses

    Season 3 Episode 2 - Aired 4/26/2024

    Churchill Downs, the cathedral of horse racing, turned into a horse graveyard at last year's Kentucky Derby. This film explores the sport beneath the pageantry, where a quest for faster horses is causing alarming breakdowns.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Elon Musk's Crash Course
    5.4/10292 votes
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    #4 - Elon Musk's Crash Course

    Season 2 Episode 1 - Aired 5/20/2022

    Elon Musk, the world's richest person, has claimed since 2015 that, for Tesla, technology for self-driving cars is a "solved problem," and made outlandish claims about Autopilot capabilities. But a New York Times investigation reveals the quixotic nature of Musk's pursuit of self-driving technology, and the tragic results.

    Director: Emma Schwartz

    Writer: N/A

  • How to Fix a Pageant
    5.4/1042 votes
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    #5 - How to Fix a Pageant

    Season 3 Episode 1 - Aired 9/29/2023

    Decades of waning cultural credibility and recent scandals have left the Miss USA pageant in chaos. This film explores allegations that rotted the core of an iconic institution and questions if it has outlived its relevance.

    Director: Nicole Rittenmeyer

    Writer: N/A

  • To Live and Die in Alabama
    5.7/1061 votes
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    #6 - To Live and Die in Alabama

    Season 1 Episode 11 - Aired 12/3/2021

    Three police officers died in a shootout at a drug house in Alabama. One man was sentenced to death for the shootings, even though he was never accused of even touching the murder weapon. This is the story of Nathaniel Woods.

    Director: Matthew Kay

    Writer: N/A

  • The Legacy of J Dilla
    5.9/1075 votes
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    #7 - The Legacy of J Dilla

    Season 2 Episode 5 - Aired 4/7/2023

    In his short lifetime, J Dilla was a musician, producer and visionary who profoundly influenced rap and hip-hop. Given how prolific he was in his 32 years, why didn’t his accolades come sooner?

    Director: Christopher Frierson, Esther Dere

    Writer: N/A

  • Move Fast & Vape Things
    6.0/1072 votes
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    #8 - Move Fast & Vape Things

    Season 1 Episode 8 - Aired 9/17/2021

    Two Stanford graduate students had an inspired idea and an idealistic mission: create an e-cigarette that would help millions of people stop smoking. How did the founders of Juul lose their way and end up accused of addicting a whole new generation?

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Weight of the World
    6.1/1026 votes
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    #9 - Weight of the World

    Season 3 Episode 4 - Aired 11/22/2024

    As GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic soar in popularity for weight loss, following three people on their own GLP-1 journeys and exploring how decades of diet culture and society's relentless pursuit of thinness paved the way for their rise.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • They Get Brave
    6.2/1086 votes
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    #10 - They Get Brave

    Season 1 Episode 1 - Aired 7/10/2020

    As the coronavirus ravages more and more American cities, we look back to the place hit hardest: New York City. Doctors and nurses documented their lives, capturing awe‐inspiring resolve in the face of a breakdown in the health‐care system.

    Director: Samantha Stark, Alexandra Garcia, John Pappas, Lora Moftah

    Writer: N/A

  • The Killing of Breonna Taylor
    6.2/10104 votes
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    #11 - The Killing of Breonna Taylor

    Season 1 Episode 3 - Aired 9/4/2020

    A New York Times investigation examines what happened at 3003 Springfield Drive in Louisville, Kentucky, just after midnight on March 13, when police executed a warrant that resulted in the death of Breonna Taylor.

    Director: Yoruba Richen

    Writer: N/A

  • Sin Eater: The Crimes of Anthony Pellicano (1)
    6.3/1069 votes
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    #12 - Sin Eater: The Crimes of Anthony Pellicano (1)

    Season 2 Episode 3 - Aired 3/10/2023

    Part 1 of this two-part series on Hollywood’s dirtiest P.I. uses never-before-heard recordings to reveal the extraordinary methods Anthony Pellicano employed to hide the sins of celebrities and their lawyers when they thought no one was looking.

    Director: John Pappas

    Writer: N/A

  • Lie to Fly
    6.3/1052 votes
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    #13 - Lie to Fly

    Season 3 Episode 3 - Aired 8/23/2024

    A pilot's promising career takes a dark turn when he's accused of attempting to down a plane after taking psychedelic mushrooms; the film delves into pilot mental health protocols and urgent calls for reform within the aviation industry.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Sin Eater: The Crimes of Anthony Pellicano (2)
    6.4/1065 votes
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    #14 - Sin Eater: The Crimes of Anthony Pellicano (2)

    Season 2 Episode 4 - Aired 3/10/2023

    In Part 2 of this two-part series on Hollywood’s dirtiest P.I. Anthony Pellicano is out of prison – and he’s talking. Previously unseen evidence raises questions about why so few Hollywood stars faced consequences when Pellicano was exposed.

    Director: John Pappas

    Writer: N/A

  • Hurricane of Fire
    6.7/1077 votes
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    #15 - Hurricane of Fire

    Season 1 Episode 4 - Aired 9/18/2020

    Perhaps a fitting start to 2020, Australia rang in the New Year with much of the country engulfed in flames. A few people decided to confront the blaze. Watch them stand face to face with one of the most ferocious infernos in history.

    Director: John Pappas

    Writer: N/A

  • Malfunction: The Dressing Down of Janet Jackson
    6.7/10232 votes
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    #16 - Malfunction: The Dressing Down of Janet Jackson

    Season 1 Episode 10 - Aired 11/19/2021

    In 2004, a culture war was brewing when the Super Bowl halftime show audience saw a white man expose a Black woman's breast for 9/16ths of a second. A national furor ensued. The woman was Janet Jackson, and her career was never the same.

    Director: Jodi Gomes

    Writer: N/A

  • Framing Britney Spears
    6.8/107,041 votes
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    #17 - Framing Britney Spears

    Season 1 Episode 6 - Aired 2/5/2021

    Her rise was a global phenomenon. Her downfall was a cruel national sport. People close to Britney Spears and lawyers tied to her conservatorship now reassess her career as she battles her father in court over who should control her life.

    Director: Samantha Stark

    Writer: N/A

  • The Teenager Who Hacked Twitter
    7.1/10106 votes
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    #18 - The Teenager Who Hacked Twitter

    Season 1 Episode 5 - Aired 11/20/2020

    Elon Musk. Bill Gates. Kanye West. Joe Biden. Barack Obama. They and dozens of others were being hacked recently, and Twitter appeared powerless to stop it. Who had brought the tech giant to its knees? A 17-year-old kid in Tampa.

    Director: John Pappas

    Writer: N/A

  • Dominic Fike, At First
    7.4/1089 votes
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    #19 - Dominic Fike, At First

    Season 1 Episode 2 - Aired 8/7/2020

    The making of a pop star in 2020: A young musician is plucked from obscurity -- jail, actually -- and given a multi-million dollar record deal. Meet Dominic Fike as he prepares for his first international tour and makes his debut album.

    Director: Alexandra Garcia

    Writer: N/A

  • Controlling Britney Spears
    7.7/10455 votes
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    #20 - Controlling Britney Spears

    Season 1 Episode 9 - Aired 9/24/2021

    Britney Spears has said that her conservatorship had become “an oppressive and controlling tool against her.” This New York Times investigation reveals much of how it worked, including an intense surveillance apparatus that monitored every move she made.

    Director: Samantha Stark

    Writer: N/A