Capitol Man: Everything you need to know about the Donie O’Sullivan documentary
CNN Correspondent Donie O'Sullivan in his hometown of Cahersiveen. Picture Alan Landers.
Thursday marks the first anniversary of the riots in Washington DC by supporters of former US President Donald Trump. Amid the turmoil that day, however, a very Irish name began to trend on social media: Donie.
Kerry man and CNN reporter Donie O’Sullivan was live at the scene as Trump supporters overwhelmed the US Capitol and he impressed viewers internationally. On Twitter, #Donie appeared among the top trends in Ireland and he responded at the time: “Overwhelmed by all the love from Ireland tonight.”
His fanbase has only grown in the 12 months since, and tonight RTÉ will air a documentary about the Caherciveen native.
O’Sullivan completed his undergraduate degree in University College Dublin (UCD), where he helped lead a ground-breaking investigation into the mishandling of funds at the Students’ Union, and he has a masters degree in political science and government from Queen’s University Belfast. He worked as a journalist for Storyful in New York and Dublin and has been with CNN since 2016 after being hired by Cork native Samantha Barry.
He works closely with CNN's investigative unit tracking and identifying online disinformation campaigns targeting the American electorate and he was part of a team that uncovered Russian interference in the 2016 American presidential election. He also covers how social media platforms, Congress, and the American intelligence community are responding to the threat of disinformation and troll campaigns.
Capitol Man is a one-hour documentary that tells O’Sullivan’s story, how he went from growing up in a small town in Co. Kerry to become an international household name at CNN. It takes an in-depth look at the run up to 2020 election with footage from the January 6 insurrection at the US Capitol building.
It also goes behind-the-scenes with O’Sullivan to see what happens next as he explores the rise of QAnon, extreme right-wing militias and the legacy of the Trump presidency. Throughout the hour O’Sullivan talks about his personal life and his mental health struggles. His colleagues, family and friends also speak about what drives him.
Capitol Man is on RTÉ One tonight at 9.30pm. It will also be available on the RTÉ Player.
