Kathlyn Clore

I see no reason why this newsworthy and educational video segment, shown on ABC7 news in Washington, should spur the ire of anyone from angry parents to the FCC.

The news report, shown at the end of a national awareness month for breast cancer, depicts a victim of breast cancer giving herself a self-exam, with a doctor narrating and consulting. It is indeed slightly uncomfortable because of the personal subject matter. But it depicts what breasts in a way that must surely be easy for cancer sufferers to relate to: dealing with their breasts - so often seen by society as sex objects - as clinical objects to be poked and prodded by medical professionals.

I don’t know why some viewers want to pretend breasts and or cancer are not facts of life. But that’s what two Canadian women found earlier in October when a public service announcement video they produced to promote a charity event in Toronto called the BoobyBall that benefits breast cancer research.

As explained in this interview, the two women behind the ad and corresponding fundraiser are are marketing their efforts to young (attractive) philanthropists. Fair enough.

I liked very much this graf from a Newsweek article about the video:

“…Dennis Durbin, an associate professor at the Annenberg School of Communications at USC, ‘While the ad does push the boundaries a bit for a serious subject, note that beautiful women displaying large breasts are used to advertise everything from beer to cars,’ he says. The ads are a welcome contrast both to traditional ads that use sex, like beer ads, and to traditional perceptions of women with breast cancer, who were once seen as diseased and unworthy.

‘This ad takes women’s breasts back from being an object to sell products to being a symbol of beauty and life, something worth protecting.’ ”

Heading to the California International Airshow tomorrow for a story - and ride on Fat Albert, a C-130 (transport) plane.

I know, it’s the sexiest name for an airplane that you’ve heard of.

I’ll go early in the day to check out what’s going on, catch some demonstrations before my flight, at 3 p.m. Tricky part with the flight is, I’m advised by my editor to stay away from first-person accounts. Apparently the paper has had several first-person ride-along stories in recent years.

Any ideas for what angles I could take? I’m bringing my secret weapon, the boyfriend, along for the assignment. He has worked in aviation in the military and can help me understand what’s happening.

So, what would you want to read about your local airshow?

Sad to see the six Gambian journalists I mentioned in yesterday’s roundup were sentenced to two-year jail sentences and fines of $20,000 each.

I urge anyone who is following the story about the two American journalists who were recently brought home from North Korea to shift their attention slightly to include this story.

Why? A Google News search for “Gambian Press Union” shows there are 42 news articles about these six journalists.

A search for “Laura Ling” (one of the journalists Bill Clinton brought home this week) turns up more than 10,000 stories.

There will be a lot of attention on the latter case for a while, and not so much, I fear, on the cases of non-American journalists doing important work in dangerous situations in places. I think it’s important to pay attention to these cases so we remind ourselves of the dangers still faced by colleagues around the world. Cases like these are so often overlooked as journalists in the West scramble to find the next business models for journalism, learn mobile reporting skills, excel at video editing and master social networking.

For more, check out IFJ and CPJ coverage.

Jessica Simpson’s PR people seem to really like circulating the oft-repeated story about her boobs being too big for the Christian music circuit.

After covering the Spirit West Coast music festival here in Monerey, California, on Saturday, I realized this story is a load of baloney.

Because people playing the Christian music circuit are actually, um, pretty hot. Like Christy Johnson. She’s the stand-up keyboardist and singer in the morbidly-named bandWorth Dying For. And for sure the crowd here really dig her breathy calls to worship as well as the band’s sometimes punky, sometimes Evanescence-esque sound.

I think she def has cross-over appeal.

I learned a few other things at this festival, too:

1. Christian music is a unique niche. It is a genre that includes everything from hip-hop to heavy metal. It’s basically the same music that’s on the rest of the airwaves, only repurposed with lyrics that don’t have any any “bad stuff.”

At least four teenagers I interviewed insisted adamantly that Christian music is “better because it doesn’t have any bad stuff”… And they seemed entirely uncomfortable when I asked what exactly they meant by “bad stuff.”

“You know… like cussin’.”

2. More seriously, while I was pretty entertained by these super psyched believers, I struggled internally with an unexpected aspect of reporting a simple man-on-the-street story from the festival: People asking me my religious beliefs.

My mind isn’t really made up about how to handle this issue.

Is it only fair that I reveal my religious beliefs if I’m asking my sources to talk about theirs? That’s the kind of premise I normally would operate under. If I’m asking a source to share his thoughts, then it seems right that I should be equally open (if asked and time permitting). However, this kind logic once saw me strip down while interviewing a (fellow?) Dutch nudist at a nude beach in the Netherlands. So perhaps my approach needs another thought.

But then again, I was not really there to do anything other than a man-on-the-street story. I was not at all asking interviewees about their beliefs when they asked about mine. So perhaps it would have been OK for me to refrain from answering the question. To beg off.

But would that only draw more attention to the issue? I’m not sure.

I am flipping through the morning news shoes today here in Monterey.

They are all showing weather reports and traffic reports every 10 minutes or so. Every station is reporting a traffic backup near the Bay Bridge. Live images of a idling cars flash across the screen corroborating reports of a 30-minute backup near a major toll plaza.

After making some kind of cutesy comment about being glad not to be stuck in that sea of metal, the traffic reporter hands the broadcast back to the main announcer. He moves on to another story.

Why not follow this report with images of what’s happening for public transport commuters? There are plenty of CalTrain stations at which to shoot pictures. It would also be good to report any major delays on the train or bus systems in and around San Fransisco and San Jose.

Reporting what’s happening for morning commuters taking public transport would be a good service for viewers (especially folks who might be tuning in to updates via smart phone) and a great way to bring the public transportation systems more into the public consciousness.

If you are looking for info on public transportation issues, check out StreetsBlogs.

Digital skills have become de rigeur, but let me take a minute to remember and pay tribute to that most old-fashioned reporter’s tool: Curiosity.

Mine took me to the California Rodeo Salinas last week for a bit of freelance reporting. I’d never been to a rodeo before, but enjoyed my first chance to check it out. Nothing too serious; my contribution to the Monterey County Herald’s coverage included a preview, profile of a local cowboy and - most hilariously - a feature on the world of rodeo queens.

Side question: Is it effective for reporters be sent to cover events they’ve not previously been exposed to for non-niche publications like newspapers? Or should newspapers consistently recruit experts to contribute to reporting - not just as sources but as content creators? I debated this with my sister, who is training to run her first marathon, last week. She thinks “no journalist can understand or convey accurately” what she’s going through in her training. Having written about several marathoners but not run longer than a 10k, I disagreed.

Thoughts?

A few notes about my first rodeo round-ups:

1. Rodeos can be fun, especially once you learn to wear proper footwear. I’m a city girl for sure - a fact given away the flip-flop sandals I wore on my first excursion to the Salinas Sports Complex - but walking through the dirt on the track to see the bulls and cowboys up close was a sensory experience anyway. The “Old West” is certainly still alive in a lot of American (and Australian and Brazillian) hearts, minds and faces: Good lord, the facial hair! Mustaches abounded, as did Wranglers, boots (spurs included) and hats.

2. Not even cowboys have missed the Web 2.0 revolution. The California Rodeo Salinas may be a 100-year-old tradition, but damn it, they sho’ can Tweet. And don’t cha worry yo’ pretty lil’ head, missy: they’re a-gittin’ their 8 seconds of glory on Facebook and MySpace, too.

3. Rodeo queens are more interesting and wholesome than beauty queens. (I did my best Google Searching to make sure of it, let me tell ya).And rodeo girls can at least ride horses and identify “pieces of tack” while onstage. I don’t see Carrie Prejean being able to do such a pretty wave while on horseback. Plus, I doubt the Miss Rodeo California committee buys its queen a new set of fake boobs.

Story idea for next year: Who provides health insurance for these bullridin’ yahoos?

According to an AFP report on EuroBusiness, Bulgarian reporters are crafting bogus weather reports to skirt a law that bans them from releasing exit poll data from the European elections.

I love this!

In the United States, everyone always fears exit poll data from the East Coast will influence voters on the West Coast. The concern is that people in California feel defeated and less likely to vote if they see that voters around the country have overwhelmingly turned out for Candidate A instead of Candidate B.

So I’m sure EU politicians who banned the reporting of exit polling data until voting finished are worried about similar problems - especially since the elections are unfolding over June 4 - June 9.

Still, its my opinion that the media’s job is to inform the citizens. What the citizens do with that data is up to them (security issues aside).

This line from the AFP especially made me smile:

“Like the Audrey Hepburn character in “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” who relays coded mafia messages to a jailed don, the BGNES news agency beat a close-of-voting 7:00 pm (1600 GMT) legal embargo with some curious temperatures.

As Bulgaria basked in temperatures above 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit), the agency reported that temperatures near the Sofia municipality were 25 degrees Celsius compared to 22 degrees near the Socialist Party headquarters.

In other words, the right-wing GERB party of Sofia mayor Boyko Borisov was winning a quarter of all votes, while the Socialist party of Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev was trailing.”

EUObserver has more.

This video ran on Dutch TV.

I like the presenter’s chart. He does a good job showing first the results from this week’s vote in the Netherlands, then moves on to showing what the results mean in terms of seats in Parliament.

Short, sweet, informative.

Also, Reymond Frenken’s EUXTV is doing a great job covering the results. He has a playlist available below.

I am about halfway finished reading the book International News Reporting: Frontlines and Deadlines. The book explains a lot about how the news “works” (a lot of info I wish my media-bashing boyfriend would read!) and makes the case for why professional journalism (something apart from citizen journalism) is important and will continue to be necessary - especially breaking news, analysis and war coverage.

What I’ve re-realized is just how much footage I see on CNN and BBC comes from freelancers. I am always conscious of how much newspaper content comes from wire services, but I’d forgotten that the same goes for broadcast journalism (a term I once heard a managing editor describe as “an oxymoron).

I particularly liked Chapter Four, on freelance journalism, written by a famous (at least in the industry) cameraman called Vaughan Smith. He founded Frontline Club.

He writes that working for an employer (i.e., being employed by a newspaper or station) is for journalists tantamount to sacrificing, on whatever level, journalistic purpose in its essence.

“ But it is still remarkable how many highly intelligent journalists lose their capacity for critical analysis when considering their own industry and profession. For which too few assume any responsibility,” he writes.

A few pages later:

“Journalists can choose to work on the outside, and freelance journalism, unfiltered and fettered, when conducted skillfully and with integrity, though its reach may be shorter, is journalism’s highest form.”

I gotta say, I have the utmost respect and admiration for freelance journalism, which I normally associate with international stories. The journalists who pursue that work remind me of crazy athletes I’ve interviewed who make a hobby of Ironman Triathlons. They (the athletes and hardcore freelancers) are people who often neglect the personal relationships in their lives to pursue their ‘mission.’

But also, I often find that these people have sidelines in other work. Or they are financially supported by a family member. Or they’re older journalists who established themselves by working for, well, the establishment.

I can’t really decide if I agree with Smith’s premise that being employed fulltime sacrifices journalistic integrity. I think this outlook is certainly worth consideration but may be entirely too academic.

Regardless, reading Smith’s chapter reminds me of a short interview/chat I did/had last year at DNA2008 (Bernd produced the video):



I heard Mehmet Koksal speak at the European Investigative Journalism Conference. He gave a great insight into what it takes to cover minority issues in Europe. I think these communities are truly harder to penetrate in Europe than in the United States, where it seems everyone wants to assimilate and “be American.” From what I’ve experienced living in the Netherlands, you don’t really hear recent immigrants (legal or otherwise) talking about wanting to “be European,” or even “be Dutch.”

Heck, you barely hear Europeans speak about wanting to “be European!” Anyway, the following is the article I wrote after speaking further with Mehmet about the issues he raised at the conference. I had a delay in between interviewing him and publishing this, but I found his anecdotes and advice truly interesting and worthwhile for journalists to know.

Especially at its so-called heart, Europe is home to a dizzying array of small communities. Each capitol city has its own Turkish neighbourhoods, Jewish neighbourhoods and students’ areas.

All with their own stories.

But these communities can be wary of outsiders. Language barriers abound. Especially in cities outside their normal beats, journalists often need help going local. That’s where fixers come in.

Mehmet Koksal, 31, has been working as a fixer in Brussels since around 2000, when he started sharing his investigative work on a blog. He grew up in French-speaking Brussels, but both of his parents come from Turkey. He also speaks Dutch and English. After a year studying in St. Petersburg, he speaks Russian.

When he was a recent university graduate working outside the mainstream Belgian press, Koksal used a blog to promote transparency between minority groups in Belgium. He’d translate what was being said by actors in the political sphere, often revealing the efforts of politicians trying to influence voters by way of a different language.

“Most of the time that created a huge controversy,” he says.

He remains well-sourced in Belgium, particularly in minority communities. In addition to working as a fixer for The New York Times and Wall Street Journal Europe, he is a self-employed freelance journalist working for several news agencies as well as Courier International and IPS. He also works as an official translator for police and judges in Belgium.

Tips from Koksal and other journalists who have worked with fixers:

1. A good fixer isn’t too hard to find… If you know where to look

Koksal says journalists researching stories about minority issues in Belgium often stumble upon his name. They see he is working for established newspapers.

“The journalists’ world is a small world. If you know someone is a good person to work with, you give the name to your colleague who is coming to Brussels… I’m doing it when I go abroad, call some local contacts to see if they can give me the name of who I should contact.”

2. The motivations of a good fixer should be transparent. Is he in it for love or for money? His reputation should also be easy to ascertain.

Koksal is passionate about investigating where the mainstream press is not allowed. Plus, working with other journalists gives him a chance to learn on the job.

“I’m also receiving ideas for further articles,” he says. “And I never learned so much as when I worked for the New York Times or the Wall Street Journal as a fixer.”

3. A good fixer speaks the language of your sources. A great fixer speaks in an authentic accent and knows local slang. That can mean anything from speaking Russian in Latvia to speaking German with a wicked Turkish accent.

“In some communities, a brown-haired fixer who knows the slang is the most useful,” Koksal says.

4. The fixer should be steeped in the cultural background of your sources. He should anticipate their concerns and be able to address those in an honest, clear fashion.

“Turkish people sometimes see journalists as people who are promoting, who are only doing good coverage to promote a film for the movie industry, or a book for a famous writer,” Koksal says. “The first thing is to explain to those minority groups the idea of journalism, checks and balances, what the idea of transparency is… Most of the time we start from zero. So if you go in with your Ph.D. from a big university and you are expecting the same degree of knowledge, it simply does not work.”

5. A good fixer knows her way around local bureaucracies. She knows how to find birth certificates, religious documents and can unearth driving records.

Koksal worked with Craig Smith from The New York Times worked with Craig Smith from The New York Times to explore the background of Muriel Degauque, the first European woman to stage a suicide attack in Iraq. He worked to find her family, her friends, where she went to school, how she met her husband, when she converted to Islam, what kind of mosque she attended.

6. Reliable fixers will work with journalists to sync expectations about costs, decorum and safety prior to working together.

“I had an experience working with a fixer in Kashmir a few years ago,” e-mails American photographer Jenna Isaacson Pfueller. “I was paired up with two young men and an older driver. On the second day one of the young men began saying things and making advances I was uncomfortable with. Luckily I was able to quickly find another, female fixer I was much, much more comfortable with.

My advice would be to get to know your fixers a little bit, or talk with people they’ve worked with in the past before heading places that are even more unfamiliar than where you are. Since you’re trusting and paying this person and will be spending a good deal of time with them, you don’t want the added discomfort of that on top of the work you’re hoping to accomplish.”

7. When fixers are acting as translators, journalists and fixers should be able to communicate well in their bridge language to make sure each question and answer of an interview is clear. Both parties must be free to repeat, rephrase and re-clarify as much as needed.

“Make sure you understand each other perfectly,” e-mails Isabelle Roughol from a newspaper in Southeast Asia. “Even if it means repeating and reformulating your question five times, or making them repeat their answers five times. This is especially true when their English (or your whatever-language-they-speak) isn’t top-notch. One mistranslation can mean huge libel. Don’t take your chances.”

<b>8. Both parties should agree to the specific uses of the material. </b>

“I was raised in Europe, educated in the US and now work in Southeast Asia,” Roughol writes. “So I’ve had a chance to see how much journalism ethics differ from one place to the next. Make sure you and your fixer or translator are on the same page and comfortable with how each operates.”

9. Journalists should have realistic expectations of their fixers, not expecting them to construct a story.

“I’m not a magic man,” Koksal says. “Don’t call me if you have no idea what you want to write… It’s annoying when a journalist comes to Belgium and he didn’t do anything to research the subject he’s writing about.”

10. Approach the fixer with a long-term relationship in mind. Journalists who come to town looking for a one-off scoop will not be as successful as those who cultivate professional relationships.

“As a journalist you have to work on the long run,” Koksal says. “I’m living longtime relationships with my sources… and I’m not giving all their information all at once.”

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Flickr images from users Ole Begemann, cicilief and bicyclemark