‘Alaska Daily’ Episode 3 Recap: Is Eileen and Roz’s Partnership Over?

ABC’s new drama Alaska Daily centers around Eileen Fitzgerald, played by Hilary Swank. She is a journalist who accepts a new job in Anchorage, Alaska, after getting shunned in New York for writing a story about the Secretary of Defense. And her new investigative piece is about missing and murdered indigenous women in Alaska. Read on for a recap of Alaska Daily Episode 3 and Eileen’s continued investigation into Gloria Nanmac’s death.

[Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers from Alaska Daily Season 1 Episode 3, “It’s Not Personal.”]

Eileen and Roz confront the police in ‘Alaska Daily’ Episode 3

Eileen and Roz Friendly travel to Meade with Gloria’s mother, Sylvie, by plane to investigate Gloria’s case further in Alaska Daily Episode 3. Meade was her hometown, so Eileen and Roz stay at Sylvie’s house.

After arriving, Eileen and Roz disagree about their next steps. Eileen believes they should go to the cops first to ask for a police report. However, Roz states they should go to the cultural council and inform them of the situation while offering a gift. Eileen stands her ground, but Roz warns her that they don’t want to make an enemy of the council. They end up going to the police station.

There, they sit down with Chief Durkin, who was in charge of Gloria’s case. Durkin agrees to review the report, redact any “sensitive information,” and turn it over to the journalists.

Eileen and Roz leave the police station and head to the crime scene and Skeeter’s house. They ask around and get Skeeter’s real name — Clarence Redding. And they find out the police are confiscating drugs and re-selling them. At one point, Eileen and Roz run into Roz’s half-brother, Derek, who she has never met. They share a father who left Roz when she was a baby.

At Sylvie’s house, Eileen and Roz receive the police report, but almost all of it is redacted. They decide to look into Durkin by trying to get his monthly reports, but City Hall refuses to hand them over. Eileen goes to Derek, who works at payroll, for help behind Roz’s back. Eileen gets the reports, and Roz is furious with her for turning to Derek.

Roz meets with the cultural council leader to ask if they have had any problems with the local police. There is one girl who went to the cops when her boyfriend beat her up, but Durkin determined her case was “unfounded.” Her case is one of many, and she is willing to go on record against Durkin. Eileen and Roz later discover the police have dismissed over 70 sexual assault cases against women.

The duo tracks down Durkin and confronts him. He admits he is prejudiced against indigenous women, and Eileen and Roz get it all on tape.

Austin’s case of the week involves a conflict of interest at the paper

Austin Teague works on a story about a senatorial candidate, Frank Moses, in Alaska Daily Episode 3. He interviews him in a cafe, but the politician has an emergency and has to leave before it’s done. Bob Young informs Austin that an environmental activist leaked photos of dead fish at Meacham tailings pond, and LH Mining is responsible.

Moses tweets his support for the fishing industry and his disgust with the leaked photos.

Stanley Cornik, played by Jeff Perry, assigns tasks to the team about the scandal, including political candidates’ responses. Austin recruits Yuna Park to help him dig into Moses’s financials. They discover that mysterious LLCs are funding Moses’s campaign. And Austin and Bob connect names tied to the LLCs to board members of LH Mining.

They take the information to Stanley, but he wants Austin to double-check that LH Mining isn’t backing other candidates, which angers Austin. He believes they’re holding back because Aaron Pritchard, the Daily Alaskan‘s owner, is endorsing Moses. Stanley meets with Aaron, who tries to persuade him not to publish the story on Moses. However, that just made him suspicious of the owner.

Stanley later gives Austin the green light to publish his story about Moses’s ties to LH Mining.

Roz gives Eileen an ultimatum in ‘Alaska Daily’ Episode 3

Eileen and Roz return to Anchorage at the end of Alaska Daily Episode 3 and meet with Stanley. The managing editor agrees that they should go forward with the story about Durkin.

Before leaving, Roz confronts Eileen about going behind her back with Derek. She wants her to stop being a “dick,” and if she pulls anything else, Roz is cutting off their partnership. Eileen agrees, and they exit Stanley’s office.

Elsewhere, Yuna meets with a therapist to discuss Jordan Teller’s suicide and the online hate she’s receiving about her article on him. And Austin’s ex-wife, Anna, informs him that she has an offer for a new job in Chicago. Anna’s going to accept it, and she wants to take their son with her. Austin, understandably so, tries to convince her to reconsider.

The final scene previews Stanley looking into the Pritchard Family.

Alaska Daily airs Thursdays at 10 p.m. ET on ABC.

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