Access (The West Wing)

Infobox Television episode
Title = Access
Series = The West Wing


Caption =
Season = 5
Episode = 106
Airdate = March 312004
Production = 176068
Writer = Lauren Schmidt
Director = Alex Graves
Guests = Clark Gregg
Sam Robards
Albie Selznick
NiCole Robinson
Wilson Cruz
Michael Gallagher
Michael Kagan
Joseph Vassallo
Will Lyman (narration)
Episode list = List of "The West Wing" episodes
Season list = Infobox The West Wing season 5 episode list
Prev =
Next ="Access" is episode 106 of "The West Wing".

Plot

Producing a program on past and present White House press secretaries, a television documentary crew follows C.J. around to film a "typical" day. But the presence of outsiders adds stress when a crisis involving a terrorist shootout with the FBI has a smiling C.J. trying to keep the story a secret. Meanwhile, C.J. supervises her team in preparation for a formal papal visit with Bartlet and dodges difficult questions about the imminent future of the current FBI director.

The show concludes with a statement, seemingly made after the conclusion of Bartlet's presidency, that C.J. Cregg is the only White House Press Secretary to have served two terms - a claim somewhat undermined by the storyline of the Sixth and Seventh Seasons of the West Wing, in which C.J. becomes Chief of Staff. However, since the commentary did not say C.J. had served two "full" terms, it may not be considered a retcon.

The hostage situation at Shaw Island was the second such situation on the show; the first was in The State Dinner, in McClane, Idaho. Interestingly, the episode cites a third hostage crisis during Bartlet's first term at Casey Creek.

External links

* [http://epguides.com/WestWing/ The West Wing Episode Guide]