Covering Crisis: Refresh and Reboot
With generous support from the James W. Foley Legacy Foundation, the Rory Peck Trust, and the ACOS Alliance, the Dart Center offered its annual four-day crisis zones reporting course to 38 freelance journalists at no cost.
This five-day virtual 'Refresher and Reboot’ safety training was held on Zoom October 5-9, 2020, and built on the core foundation of knowledge and skills gained through the in-person crisis zones reporting program at Crisis Zones Reporting Course at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. Through expert briefings, interactive scenario-based exercises, small group discussions and individual coaching, the course covered:
Risk assessment and situational awareness with an emphasis on safely covering civil unrest and uprisings, natural disasters, and the Covid-19 pandemic.
Emergency first aid with an emphasis on staunching bleeding and tourniquet tying.
Digital security with an emphasis on securing data and communications with sources, and new risks that have arisen with Covid-19.
Legal matters with an emphasis on legal recourse if arrested or detained, as well as work contracts, risk and liability insurance, and ‘know your rights’.
Trauma awareness and self-care with an emphasis on resiliency-building and science-informed techniques for managing stress and mental health.
This course was offered two times a day during the week of October 5th to accommodate different time zones.
Course Instructors
- Judith Matloff, Lead Instructor, Senior Safety Advisor, Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma, Adjunct Faculty, Columbia Journalism School
- Harlo Holmes, Director of Newsroom Digital Security, Freedom of the Press Foundation
- Sawyer Alberi, Combat Medic Trainer, EMT-P, Adjunct Faculty at Johnson State College graduate of the US Coast Guard Academy
- Padraig Hughes, Legal Director, UK-based Media Defence Initiative that trains lawyers to represent journalists and litigates libel and other issues related to freedom of the press and human rights violations of journalists
- Carlos Gaio, Senior Legal Officer, UK-based Media Defence Initiative
- Saba Ashraf, Senior Legal Officer, UK-based Media Defence Initiative
- Joanna Connolly, Legal Officer, UK-based Media Defence Initiative
- Bruce Shapiro, Executive Director, Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma