Ponyville Confidential

Ponyville Confidential
Season №:	2
Season episode №:	23
Overall episode №:	49
Original airdate:	March 31, 2012
Written by:	M. A. Larson
Storyboard:	Sherann Johnson & Justin Nichols
Featured characters:	Cutie Mark Crusaders Diamond Tiara Featherweight
See also
credits • transcript • gallery • allusions animation errors • statistics • speculation
Episode guide
Previous Hurricane Fluttershy	Next MMMystery on the Friendship Express

Ponyville Confidential is the twenty-third episode of the second season of My Little Pony Friendship is Magic and the forty-ninth episode overall. In this episode, the Cutie Mark Crusaders start producing a gossip column for the school newspaper in an effort to earn cutie marks in journalism, though their concession to the demand for slanderous material lands them in hot water.

Summary

The Foal Free Press

What newspapers are really for.

Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo walk out of the schoolhouse one afternoon and look on as their classmate Featherweight shows off his new cutie mark. While the girls despair about not having their own, Apple Bloom appears and claims that the school newspaper, the Foal Free Press, will solve their problems, though Granny Smith calls her away before she can explain further. Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle proceed to try out various activities related to using newspapers but find no success. They relay their results to Apple Bloom, who clarifies that they should try writing for the school newspaper as journalists.

The new editor-in-chief: Diamond Tiara.

The Cutie Mark Crusaders attend an afterschool meeting to join the newspaper staff. Cheerilee opens by announcing that Diamond Tiara is the new editor-in-chief before handing her the reins and leaving the room. As soon as the door closes, Diamond declares her intention to reform the newspaper with more compelling material and orders Featherweight to start documenting everything in his role as staff photographer. Scootaloo suggests that the Crusaders try a different way to get their cutie mark, though Sweetie Belle convinces her to stick it out.

Gabby Gums

The Crusaders prepare a set of inoffensive stories for publication, though Diamond Tiara flatly rejects them and demands juicier material. Outside the newspaper's schoolhouse headquarters, Sweetie Belle overhears Snips and Snails shouting nearby and walks around the corner to find them struggling to extricate themselves from a glob of chewing gum. Under the pseudonym "Gabby Gums", the girls write about the incident in a story that gains widespread popularity among the school ponies. Diamond Tiara congratulates them on their success and tells them to continue producing similar stories, though the Crusaders quickly find themselves out of things to write about.

Snooping is wrong... but fun!

At the Carousel Boutique, Rarity finds a copy of the Foal Free Press inside of Sweetie Belle's discarded saddle bag and begins reading. Sweetie walks in and catches her with the bag, though Rarity deflects and asks if she can show the paper to her friends, having taken an interest in the story about Snips and Snails. Recognizing an opportunity, Sweetie rushes to meet with Apple Bloom and Scootaloo and advises that they expand the scope of their column to include the whole of Ponyville. The girls publish a story about Pound Cake and Pumpkin Cake making a fuss at the store, producing such demand for the school paper that it starts being sold across town.

The gossip intensifies

Kicking clouds full of lighting with them is fine but having them filed isn't.

Sometime later, the Mane Six discuss the latest Gabby Gums stories as they and Spike relax at the Ponyville Day Spa. Twilight Sparkle worries about the privacy of the ponies involved, though her friends insist that the column is harmless and entertaining. Rarity invites Rainbow Dash to get a hooficure, but as the spa worker approaches with a file, Rainbow gets anxious and declines. She remarks how she'd love Gabby Gums to do a story on her, whereupon Spike reveals that Gabby did a story on him.

The Cutie Mark Crusaders present their interview with Spike to Diamond Tiara, who dismisses it as their worst work yet. The girls admit to each other that they had been feeling bad about their usual gossip but determine to continue for the sake of earning their cutie marks.

The latest gossip... about themselves.

At Sugarcube Corner, the Mane Six vent indignation over a recent spate of slanderous Gabby Gums articles about them: Applejack sleeps on the job, Twilight is a snob, Fluttershy has tail extensions, Pinkie Pie is an out-of-control party animal, and Rainbow is a "super softy" for being photographed near a hooficure file. After Rarity finds an article that features excerpts of her private diary, Twilight suggests that Sweetie Belle might know who Gabby Gums is since she's on the newspaper staff. Rarity presumes her sister would never associate with such a character only to return home later and find her diary in Sweetie's saddle bag.

The secret is out

Diamond reveals her backup plan.

Rarity confronts Sweetie Belle about publishing her diary and asks if the Crusaders really want a cutie mark about humiliating others. Convinced by this point, the girls agree to quit and relay their decision to Diamond Tiara, who responds by threatening to publish embarrassing photos that Featherweight took of them as they worked on their first stories.

The Crusaders determine to publish another story but soon realize that everyone in town knows their identity as Gabby Gums. Faced with disdain and anger whenever they attempt an interview, the girls instead write an open letter wherein they apologize for causing pain and acknowledge that they got swept up in the column's hype even when they knew their actions were wrong. Diamond Tiara assumes it's a regular story and sends it to print only to vow retaliation when she later realizes the truth. Recognizing the abuse of power, however, Cheerilee steps in the next day and strips Diamond of her role as editor-in-chief before promoting Featherweight to the position instead.

Quotes

For more quotes, see the episode's transcript.

Diamond Tiara: I want hard-hitting news and interesting think pieces. No more Namby-Pamby stories like last year's editor.

"Ruby Pinch": But Namby-Pamby was a great editor.

Diamond Tiara: I don't know what you call this, but it sure isn't news!

Sweetie Belle: We just... thought...

Diamond Tiara: Get something else on my desk by the end of the day, and it better be juicy!

Snips: Our mothers always told us we'd end up in the papers someday.

Snails: Yeah, and look! We finally got the gum out!

Sweetie Belle: You actually like the school paper?

Rarity: It's so much juicier than anything in the boring old Ponyville Express. Could I borrow this to show my friends?

Sweetie Belle: Your friends would wanna read the Foal Free Press?

Rarity: Oh, they'd just love Gabby Gums! Who is she, anyway?

Twilight Sparkle: I like Gabby Gums too, but don't you think she can be a little mean?

Applejack: She's not mean, Twilight, she's a hoot!

Rainbow Dash: Man, I'd love it if Gabby Gums did a story on me.

Spike: She did one on me.

Main cast: What?!

Rarity: My sister would never associate with anyone as beastly as Gabby Gums! I resent you even suggesting such a thing, Twilight! Why, she's the most innocent, most lovely— most evil pony in Equestria!

Sweetie Belle: Stop the presses!

"Shady Daze": Uh... they haven't started yet.

Gallery

Ponyville Confidential image gallery

References

v • e Episodes, films, and animated shorts

Make Your Mark
Episode 1 Izzy Does It	Episode 2 Growing Pains	Episode 3 Portrait of a Princess	Episode 4 Ali-Conned
Episode 5 The Cutie Mark Mix-Up	Episode 6 The Traditional Unicorn Sleep-Over	Episode 7 Hoof Done It?	Episode 8 Have You Seen This Dragon?
Episode 9 Top Remodel	Episode 10 The Jinxie Games	Episode 11 Sunny Side Up	Episode 12 The Manesquerade Ball
Episode 13 A Little Horse	Episode 14 Missing the Mark	Episode 15 Cutie Blossom Bash	Episode 16 Family Trees Pt. 1
Episode 17 Family Trees Pt. 2	Episode 18 Father of the Bridlewood	Episode 19 Mane Smelody	Episode 20 Nightmare on Mane Street
Episode 21 The Isle of Scaly‎‎	Episode 22 Roots of All Evil Pt. 1‎	Episode 23 Roots of All Evil Pt. 2