The major story that usually gets away:
What every journalist needs to know about war
By Jacob Rudolph
Two foreign correspondents
discussed the problems associated with reporting war crimes on Saturday,
Oct. 28 at the Society of Professional Journalists National Convention
in Columbus, Ohio.
Tom Rosenstiel, an independent journalist, and Maria Trombly, an assignment
editor in Moscow, Russia, have reported during countless civil uprisings
in war-torn regions such as Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
Many problems arise for foreign journalists during such times, the two
panelists said, including accurately reporting crimes of war. The problems
extend from a general media attitude toward foreign coverage in a post-Cold
War era, Rosenstiel said.
“Newspapers have pulled all their foreign reporters out of most corners
of the world,” Rosenstiel said. “When something happens, we don’t have
any contacts and are more vulnerable to manipulation. We’re quite incapable
of reporting what’s going on there because we don’t have any contacts.”
The manipulation of foreign press agents in war-inflicted countries is
especially apparent in cases where people are fleeing their homeland.
A large percentage of refugees will lie about situations, because they
know the impact their stories can have, Trombly said.
“Refugees are mad at those
who made them refugees,” Trombly said. “The worst place to get a story
of atrocity is across the front line from where it exists. Always double
check refugee sources. Most of the time, even when they say it doesn’t,
you’ll find their village actually does still exist.”
Gaining access to certain areas of war zones can be a daunting task. Trombly
and Rosenstiel suggest the first place a foreign journalist reporting
on a civil war should look is the local media.
“Often times the local media aren’t allowed to print certain stories,
but they know everything that’s going on,” Rosenstiel said. “Foreign and
local presses can get along, and you should treat them like colleagues.
You’re not a lone wolf out there; and, believe me, you don’t want to be.”
Foreign reporting difficulties are easily overcome using the right techniques.
Even in times of turmoil, people are willing to talk about the wrongs
they have witnessed, Rosenstiel and Trombly said. A journalist, however,
must always be vigilant.
“(As a foreign correspondent) you are not a spy, you’re a journalist,”
Trombly said. “Be skeptical, but at the same time, be sensitive. And if
you get arrested, never play the strong, silent type, because they’ll
kill you.”
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