Children deserve special consideration when tragedy strikes. Yet few journalists understand how children’s physical and social responses to trauma differ from those experienced by adults.
From guidance on naming minors to advice on age-appropriate interview techniques, these resources aid and inform journalists on how children affected by traumatic events can be involved in your reporting and news coverage in general.
This tip sheet was drawn from the second webinar in a series focused on Early Childhood Reporting, part of the Dart Center’s Early Childhood Journalism Initiative (ECJI).
In 2009, former news editor of the Sunday Times and the Observer Andrew Hogg spoke to journalism students at the City University in London about the treatment of torture victims. Below is the text of his illuminating speech.
(This was originally published on November 13, 2012, in the wake of the London High Court decision allowing three Kenyans to sue the UK government for torture they suffered during the 1950s and 60s Mau Mau revolution.)
When conducting an interview with someone who has experienced trauma – especially a child – remember that you have the power, and they have the hurt. How do you give a child a sense of power and control? How do you help them tell their story?
The Dart Center has gathered a selection of resources to support journalists as they cover recent incidents of gun violence and mass shootings.
Covering guns and gun violence