— Washington News Council

Western Washington University’s Fairhaven College hosted a guest last week who is playing a very unique and important role in the scheme of journalism and it’s craft. Joan Connell is the associate director of operations at the Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma at Columbia University. In her words, the Dart Center is

“a global alliance of psychiatrists, working journalists, educators and mental health clinicians and researchers dedicated to supporting journalists who do the emotionally arduous and sometimes dangerous work of reporting on violence and tragedy. With satellites in Europe, Australasia and Latin America, the Dart Center also works with individual reporters and news organizations worldwide to raise the ethical standard of reporting on traumatic events, with an emphasis on the needs and dignity of the victims.”

This followup article from the WWU Associated Students paper provides some interesting insight into her work, as well as the ethics of remaining objective while reporting on loss and tragedy

Although the amount of officially employed foreign correspondents has been on a statistical decline for quite some time now, the amount of people who are witnessing and recording violent events are on the rise. We can expect their numbers to grow as long our ability to document and share these event continues to expand.

Even so, there are not many professionals who focus on the effect that this kind of reporting has on the psyche of the reporter. As Connell says,

“We’re only just beginning to grapple with how journalists working under these conditions are affected by trauma and what can be done to help them and their families cope with the danger and chaos.”

Check out the interview here:

http://www.asreview.as.wwu.edu/?p=2786