Word in the Hallway

Rumors are flying at Odyssey Middle School, and Olivia Parker is right in the middle of them. When Von Hartmann, a rude high school reporter, accidentally bumps her in the hallway, the story grows with every telling... soon everyone believes he shoved her down, hurt her ankle, and might be banned from school. Olivia knows the truth, but her friend Jay Smouse convinces her to stay silent - after all, if Von is disqualified, their friend Zoe wins the last spot on the school magazine. Meanwhile, at rehearsals for Shakespeare's Othello, Miss Adelaide warns that rumors are a special kind of poison, and that staying quiet can be as bad as telling the lie. Stung by the play she's performing, Olivia finally tells the principal everything, and Von surprises her with an apology of his own. But when a brand-new rumor about Cam the photographer starts to spread, Olivia and Jay must decide whether they've truly learned their lesson.

Found on Never a Dull Moment Album 81 · 10 episodes

The run See every episode

1029 This Is My Story When a downtown bookstore burns and a reporter suggests Whit's own words may have inspired the arsonist, Whit responds not by defending himself but by gathering the stories of Odyssey's newest believers.

1030 Knox on Money A podcast episode about money takes an unexpectedly personal turn when a surprise guest's story about a long-ago robbery hits close to home for the host.

1031 Now Hiring With Whit heading out of town, Connie is promoted to manager of Whit's End and must make her first big decision: choosing the shop's newest employee from a very unlikely pool of candidates.

1032 As Iron Sharpens Iron When a Bible lesson about friendship sends Wyatt searching for the perfect companion, he turns to an AI app that tells him everything he wants to hear - while his sister Bridget's new friend turns out to be more trouble than she seems.

1 of 2 1033 The Prodigal Twin When Wooton Bassett's estranged twin brother vanishes without a trace, he flies to Alaska to play detective - and discovers that finding Wellington may mean finally facing his father.

2 of 2 1034 The Prodigal Twin When Wooton's estranged twin brother vanishes amid accusations of a multimillion-dollar theft, the Bassett family must decide whether some relationships are truly beyond repair.

1035 Word in the Hallway When a hallway rumor about her spirals out of control, a middle schooler must decide whether staying silent to help her best friend is worth the harm it causes.

1036 What's the Catch? A high schooler starting college classes gets roped into a friend's scheme to flatter a student teacher for fundraiser money - and finds the plan harder on her conscience than she expected.

1037 A Quick Fix When a get-rich-quick promise lures a young lawn-mowing entrepreneur away from honest work, two families in Odyssey learn what fast money really costs.

1038 Accountability, Please On the same day a mom returns to the police force under a difficult partner, her daughter's friends must decide whether caring about someone means confronting her about a secret.

1039 The Great Yellowstone Heist A know-it-all kid's obsessive vacation planning becomes his family's only hope when a Yellowstone camping trip takes a criminal turn.

1 of 2 1040 The Measure of a Patriot When two classmates use the Imagination Station to settle whose American patriot is most inspiring, meeting their heroes face-to-face proves far more complicated than the history books let on.

2 of 2 1041 The Measure of a Patriot Two kids time-travel through American history hoping to find a flawless founding father to write about - but every patriot they meet keeps disappointing them.

Featured characters

Minor characters & crew 5 more roles

5 supporting roles

Rhonda Adelaide Barbara Niles Henry Vogler John Rubinow Nicole Victoria Grace Cameron Morris Bryce Papenbrook Von Hartmann Nick Richards

Made by

Chris Anthony Host Abigail Geiger Writer · Director Nathan Jones Sound Designer Nathan Hoobler Producer Dave Arnold Executive Producer

The story

Read the full synopsis 4 min

Zoe Grant, a middle school reporter, is hurrying through the school hallway with her best friend Olivia Parker, sorting through her portfolio of articles. Zoe hopes to win a spot on the Parliament Press, a human interest magazine that is supposed to be a joint effort between the high school and the middle school. Nose buried in her folder, she stumbles right into a photo shoot, where a friendly high schooler named Cameron Morris, the magazine's photographer, is snapping portraits of a girl named Nicole. Cam takes a few flattering pictures of Zoe to make up for the blurry one he caught by accident, offers to walk her to the press meeting, and warns her that only one reporter spot remains, and that Von Hartmann, an award-winning high school freshman, is after it. Moments later, Von himself barrels down the hallway talking on his phone, bumps into Olivia, and snaps at her to get out of the way. Olivia insists she is fine; he only bumped her, even if he was rude about it.

Since Olivia has rehearsal for the school's production of Shakespeare's Othello, she heads to the auditorium, where her friend Jay Smouse is warming up to play the villain Iago. Their teacher, Miss Adelaide, explains that Othello is a tale of betrayal, the story of Iago's deceitful lies against the innocent Desdemona. When Olivia mentions that Von shoved past her, she quickly adds that it was no big deal, but Jay is disappointed she will not use the moment against Zoe's rival, whom he calls her "mortal enemy."

The next day, Jay, a self-appointed student of the word in the hallway, shares all the gossip he has collected about Cam and Von. Then Nicole rushes up with a shocking report: Von is supposedly a bully who pushed a girl down in the hallway, and the school may ban him from middle school grounds. Olivia realizes with alarm that the girl in the story is her, and that the story is wrong. But before she can set the record straight, Jay hushes her, declaring himself her legal counsel: "In this case, you definitely have the right to remain silent." After all, he reasons, if Von is disqualified, Zoe wins the reporter position. Olivia reluctantly stays quiet, even as the rumor grows. Soon people say Von tripped her on purpose, then that he hurt her ankle, and even that he is taking anger management classes. When Cam apologizes for not walking her to the nurse, Olivia only stammers and says nothing.

At rehearsal, Olivia plays Emilia, the servant who hands Desdemona's stolen handkerchief to Iago. Miss Adelaide coaches her to play the moment with reluctance, because Emilia knows what she is doing is wrong, even if it seems too small to count. Then Nicole arrives with a message: the principal wants to see Olivia about calling her mom to take her to urgent care after Von slammed into her. Olivia is so rattled she can barely finish the scene. Afterward, Miss Adelaide gently draws the lesson out of the play itself. Somewhere, an Iago is spreading lies about Von, and as long as Olivia stays silent about what really happened, she is as much to blame as Emilia. "Rumors are a very special kind of poison," she warns, hurting far more people than just the person they are about.

Olivia goes straight to Principal Vogler and tells the whole truth: Von bumped her by accident, he never pushed her down, and she was never hurt. Later, Von finds Olivia and Jay in the hallway, and instead of causing trouble, he apologizes for snapping at her. He explains he was on the phone with his brother, who had just canceled his ride and cost him an after-school job. Olivia apologizes in turn for letting the rumor get out of hand. Von has been turned down for the reporter spot, but he insists that is his own fault. He has been rude more than once since transferring, and the magazine wants him to improve his attitude and work as a fact checker for now. A teacher has encouraged him to make some friends, and Olivia cheerfully volunteers herself and Jay.

Just as things settle, Nicole reappears with a fresh rumor that Von was expelled from his old school, letting slip that she heard it from Cam. Jay gasps that "Cam is our Iago," but Olivia has learned her lesson. They do not know the truth, so they will not spread stories or treat Cam differently; they will believe the best until they know otherwise. Jay agrees, then immediately speculates that Cam's famous hair is probably a wig. When Olivia protests that he is literally starting another rumor, Jay cheerfully replies, "It's not a rumor if it's true."