Two brothers, Tom and Robert Harrington, working for competing newspapers find themselves covering the Cuban Revolution and the resulting Spanish American War. With their newspapers fanning the flames of war with sensationalistic journalism, evidence is discovered that Assistant Secretary of the Navy Theodore Roosevelt knew of a serious design flaw endangering the lives of sailors on board the USS Maine. When the warship mysteriously explodes in Havana Harbor, Roosevelt takes extraordinary steps to cover up the evidence while blaming saboteurs for the sinking that claims the lives of 260 sailors. The conspiracy sets the two brothers on a collision course with Robert pursuing the truth behind the sinking while Tom insists on glorifying Roosevelt thereby creating a new American hero.