CONFERENCE FULL, REGISTRATION CLOSED

Covering the World: The Logistics and Challenges of International Reporting

Sponsored by the Goldman Forum on the Press & Foreign Affairs

Saturday, April 30, 2005
North Gate Hall, UC Berkeley campus

A skills-based, hands-on day of panels and workshops, this conference will cover everything from how to plan an overseas project, who to talk to when on the ground, how to protect yourself and your sources, how to report in war zones and remote places, and how to find a story in the ordinary, how to write the story once you return. All forms of media will be discussed. Panelists will also discuss the role of overseas partners, their safety and relationship with the western journalists.

Small-group workshops include travel writing, cultural reporting, and a panel on how to get started and find your niche. Magnum photographer Susan Meiselas will also present and discuss her work.


Jigar Mehta interviewing in Mauritania, July 2004

The conference is free to students, but you need to register
 by email in advance. [coveringtheworld@lists.berkeley.edu]

Schedule

8:45am - 9:30am Coffee

9:30am - 11:45am
Getting to the Heart of the Story: The Logistics of International Reporting. From story conception to what to pack; from paperwork to knowing who to talk to and knowing whom to trust to dealing with editors, to avoiding the pitfalls of parachute journalism.

Panelists:
Rone Tempest, Los Angeles Times (moderator)
Robert Collier, San Francisco Chronicle
Michael Montgomery, American Radio Works
Cassandra Herrman, contributor to Frontline World & Discovery Channel
Lydia Chavez, Graduate School of Journalism
Hassan Ibrahim, Al-Jazeera (TBC)

Noon - 1:00pm
Lunch and Logistics of Life on the Road: Photography Presentation
Magnum photographer Susan Meiselas will be presenting and discussing her work in conversation with photographer and UC Berkeley lecturer Mimi Chakarova.

1:15pm - 3:00pm
Breakout workshops. Hands-on sessions aimed at honing skills in particular areas.

A. Travel writing with Don George of The Lonely Planet.

B. Cultural reporting: Finding the compelling in ordinary life, with author and reporter Sam Quinones of the Los Angeles Times.

C. How I Got Started: a print reporter, a documentary filmmaker, and a radio journalist talk about how they got into doing international work, share their most challenging stories, and tell you how you can find your niche.

3:00pm - 3:30pm Break: Refreshments

3:30pm - 5:30pm
Working with overseas partners: How western correspondents interact with sources and journalists on the ground.
This panel will examine distinct types of relationships between western journalists and their collaborators abroad, including stringers, partners, fixers, and sources. Special attention will be given to the responsibility foreign correspondents have to protecting their sources.

Panelists:
Sandy Tolan, Graduate School of Journalism (moderator)
Elizabeth Farnsworth, NewsHour
Lowell Bergman, New York Times
Monica Lam, contributor to Frontline World
Yosef Ardi, Bisnis Indonesia (TBC)

5:30pm - 6:30pm reception

* BOOK TABLE: Throughout the event, Analog Books will be selling books on international reporting, travel writing, and more. *