Frank Tenpenny:“Some young journalist is out there trying to get a name for himself.” Eddie Pulaski:“He doesn't know how the streets work - that he's supposed to report what he's supposed to report!” Frank Tenpenny:“Yeah. Anyway, we need you to shut him up for us.” Eddie Pulaski:“And that stoolie! Shut him up too!” — Frank Tenpenny and Eddie Pulaski brief Carl Johnson about his mission.
Carl enters the garage and is greeted by Jethro. He says that some cops are looking for him in the office. Carl realizes that it is Frank Tenpenny and Eddie Pulaski. He is welcomed by them, and they ask him how things are going, and how his brother is doing. Later on, they order Carl to kill a young journalist, who is apparently investigating Pulaski. Pulaski also tells Carl to kill another journalist who is supposedly going to meet the young journalist at the end of Yacht Harbor in Santa Maria Beach, Los Santos.
Carl heads for and obtains a sniper rifle hidden by Tenpenny at the construction site behind the garage. After doing so, he heads to Cranberry Station, just across the street from the garage, where the reporter is waiting for a train to board. The reporter boards the train and Carl pursues it. The train stops at Market Station in Market, and the reporter alights. He then hails and boards a taxi and heads for the end of Yacht Harbor in Santa Maria Beach. Carl discreetly follows him. Once the reporter arrives at his destination, he meets the journalist, and starts talking to him. However, before they can finish their talk, Carl kills the two.
Mission Objectives[]
In order to complete the mission the player must:
Tenpenny has hidden a sniper rifle in the construction site nearby. Go get it.
The reporter is at Cranberry Station. Follow him to his meeting place with the Target, then kill them both.
The train is arriving at the station. You don't have much time before it leaves with the reporter.
The reporter has boarded the train and is heading for Market Station in Los Santos. Follow that train!
The reporter has left the train. Pick up his trail and follow him to the Target.
The reporter has climbed into a cab. Follow him to the Target.
The reporter is approaching his destination. Keep your distance until he meets the Target.
The reporter is ready to meet the Target. You have a sniper rifle. Assassinate them both.
I wonder how your brother's sleeping, curled up next to his shower daddy while you live comfortably on the outside?
CJ:
Man, what you all want this time?
Tenpenny:
Well, what we want is to get on with our jobs in peace, without some damn bleeding heart liberal poking his nose into affairs he won't even understand.
CJ:
The press onto y'all?
Pulaski:
What the hell would you know about it, boy?
Tenpenny:
Woah, easy there, Eddie, let's not get ahead of ourselves. Some young journalist out there is trying to get a name for himself.
Pulaski:
He doesn't know how the streets work - that he's supposed to report what he's supposed to report.
Tenpenny:
Yeah, anyway, we need you to shut him up for us.
Pulaski:
And that stoolie - shut him up too!
Tenpenny:
Yeah, there's some reporter who's digging up dirt on Pulaski, we don't know who's talking, but we know that the reporter's meeting him today.
Pulaski:
Take care of him.
Tenpenny:
(while leaving) Oh - this is a nice place... Carl.
On the PS2 version of the game, a second train (the one carrying the reporter) may occasionally appear some distance ahead of the train Carl is following. Therefore, the player should pay attention to their radar to check whether they are following the correct train.
The Floating Train glitch can appear in this mission. A few minutes after the train leaves carrying the reporter, another train will arrive at the station but will not stop and instead take off from the rails and begin traveling towards Los Santos.
Trivia[]
This is one of a handful of missions where there is no scripted dialogue during gameplay.
The driver of the Taxi in the mission is not a scripted taxi driver, but is actually an African-American pedestrian found on beaches.
Unlike a similar mission in GTA III, Carl cannot use a taxi to fool the journalist into his vehicle.
During the mission, there is a special flag turned on that decreases the friction of the train tracks, allowing the player to follow the train easier.
Regardless of which direction the player is looking when waiting for the reporter's taxi, the taxi will arrive from the opposite direction.
There are two possible routes the taxi driver can take. Both of them have large detours and are longer than an ideal route to the pier.
Blocking the road of the taxi before the reporter gets in will cause an additional taxi to spawn somewhere else. Blocking all roads around the station will prevent progress until the blockade is cleared.
It is possible to get into the train the reporter boards before he enters it and disappears if the player dashes towards Cranberry Station fast enough. This will teleport Carl into the carriage and the player can skip the trip to the next scenario where the train eventually arrives at Market Station.
If another train appears on the line ahead of the reporter's train, the reporter's train will simply pass through it, as the route of the reporter's train is scripted.
Despite the game instructing the player to take the sniper rifle, the player can use any weapon in their inventory to kill the targets.