“Interview a person when they are able to talk about their scar, not their wound.” — this really resonated with me and reminded me of the first refugee survivor I ever interviewed, an 8 year old girl who floated on the back of her dead grandmothers body to cross over to Myanmar to Bangladesh. I never used her story in any of my reporting because it didn’t feel right to exploit her pain, especially when she didn’t really understand why I was asking her questions.
Thanks for sharing this; so much good advice and practical lessons I'm taking away. I was familiar with the "scars vs. wounds" framework, which is one of my favorite ways to think about this type of stuff.
I felt like I was back in your class while reading this! I still remember that day when Bethel Habte shared that piece of advice with us, and it's great advice for not only reporting but listening to others in our daily lives as well. I also appreciated the insight from your reporting experience on Binna and Edralina. Looking forward to reading more storytelling tips :)
Thanks for sharing this. As a writer and a Certified Clinical Trauma Professional, it is heartening to see this issue being addressed.
“Interview a person when they are able to talk about their scar, not their wound.” — this really resonated with me and reminded me of the first refugee survivor I ever interviewed, an 8 year old girl who floated on the back of her dead grandmothers body to cross over to Myanmar to Bangladesh. I never used her story in any of my reporting because it didn’t feel right to exploit her pain, especially when she didn’t really understand why I was asking her questions.
That is heart wrenching, thank you for sharing. With kids this brings in so many more ethical considerations too.
Thanks for sharing this; so much good advice and practical lessons I'm taking away. I was familiar with the "scars vs. wounds" framework, which is one of my favorite ways to think about this type of stuff.
I felt like I was back in your class while reading this! I still remember that day when Bethel Habte shared that piece of advice with us, and it's great advice for not only reporting but listening to others in our daily lives as well. I also appreciated the insight from your reporting experience on Binna and Edralina. Looking forward to reading more storytelling tips :)