Andrews and Toren work for a major news organization. An American has been convicted in Hungary of spying. They are trying to get news out of the embassy, without success, until Andrews is pushy and gets escorted into the office by a guard, where he inadvertently gets an interview with the Ambassador. Plus he learns where the convict's wife lives. Sanders appears to be sweet on Toren and will not let her pursue the story that Hungary and Yugoslavia are making a deal behind the Soviet Union's back. Audrey Totter, Sanders' secretary, has a torch for him. He will not publish Andrews' story because he cannot back up his facts. The Hungarian prime minister makes a speech threatening to hang the next western spy. At dinner, Toren tells Andrews about her developing story, and that a photograph was taken of the meeting. While they are eating, Donald Randolph, an influential Hungarian official, asks Toren to dinner later in the week. Andrews kisses her goodnight, and she is affected by it. She does not know that Randolph has had her room searched while she was out, looking for evidence of Sandro Giglio, an underground figure. He sends to hit men to follow her, on of which is Leon Askin (General Borkhalter from Hogan's Heroes).
Sanders sends Toren to interview Gen. Eisenhower, and Andrews tags along. He asks her if she and Sanders are in love with each other. She evades the question, but he tells her he is in love with her. Sanders sends Andrews to Budapest. Randolph figures that Toren told him anything he knew about the underground figure. Toren is upset that Andrews is going. He is called immediately to see the Prime Minister. He starts turning out stories, under more and more pressure. An antique dealer comes in asking after his predecessor, and slips him a note that the convict is dead. He is able finally to see his predecessor in the hospital, and he slips him a note in code during their conversation about a tailor who is a contact. Andrews is able to slip to Sanders in code the news that the convict is dead. The tailor gives him a suit, but in a staged auto accident, it is stolen out of the car - but it turns up in his room. It contains a negative of the meeting. He goes to see his predecessor, who fakes a medical emergency to get the nurse out of the room momentarily, while Andrews gets something out of his briefcase. As he is leaving the the hospital room, he is placed under arrest. The interview him, then they splice the recording to make it look like a confession, and then they broadcast it and say it will result in the death penalty. In prison, it appears that his food, drink and cigarettes are doped. They flash lights constantly at him so that he cannot sleep.
The only piece of Andrews's predecessor's effects that is returned to Paris with his corpse is his passport. Toren discovers the picture in it. They go to Randolph with the picture, but he claims it proves nothing. Toren is told by a contact where she can get information that will save Andrews, but she is tailed. Askins and friend steal the information from her. They get her to call Giglio to come to the apartment. They arrest him, but the French police stop them. Giglio offers to exchange himself for Andrews. All he asks is that his children get to go to America. In a dramatic scene, the two are exchanged, but Andrews appears to be in some sort of shock. Sanders tells the Prime Minister not to kill Giglio unless he wants the whole story printed.
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