Articles

A Journalist and a Survivor

‘If I can give advice to journalists, I suggest it’s all about relationships.’

Winter 2009: Introduction

Reporting in the aftermath of tragedy and violence, journalists discover what happens when people survive crippling moments of horror. Pushing past what is formulaic and numbing, they find ways to…

Bringing What’s Buried in Folders to Life

‘The closer I felt to these people, the more attention I paid to details—to timelines, to chronologies, to what kind of food they ate, what kind of medication they were…

Approaching Emotional Pain—As a Journalist

‘Routinely we witness the awful things that people do to each other and the most enduring awfulness of all, the aftermath.’

Tears Are Part of Telling the Story

‘That day in the bedroom Gary asked the questions; he fought the urge to cry. He did his job.’

When They Come for Us

‘… when you are compelled to leave your … family, your work, your country, and your life as you knew it, that’s when you realize you cannot give up. You…

Manipulator or Human Rights Facilitator?

A journalist involved with the South African Broadcasting Corporation’s radio coverage of that country’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission describes how it was done and why decisions made about its approach…

Manipulator or Human Rights Facilitator? (Extended)

An extended, online-only version of Antjie Krog's "Manipulator or Human Rights Facilitator?"

Art and Literature: Guiding Journalists in Trauma’s Portrayal

‘… Nieman Fellows who’d been in the Balkans wanted to take courses in music, art, poetry, and other kinds of literature. I don’t think this happens arbitrarily.’

Art and Trauma—And Journalist as Observer

‘We have to be inside of the circle to understand the conversation, to get down and dirty with the people who are making art, and still keep that distance by…