By Varvara Makarevich
Three years ago, I was in Moscow setting my mind on going to the U.S. for the first time. At that moment, I couldn’t even think that in a couple of years I’d be calling Chris Kennedy’s campaign office, or preparing questions for the NBC Forum for Democratic candidates willing to run for Illinois Governor’s office, or even better – interviewing Ismael “Ish” Estrada, a CNN investigative producer at Anderson Cooper 360.
And here I am on a Friday morning in my Chicago apartment getting ready to interview a professional from American journalistic world I’d never thought I’d have a chance to talk to. Nervous and excited. These are the two words that describe best my emotional condition.
The second Estrada picks up the phone, I put my emotions aside. Because this is a part of my job – to be, or at least to sound, confident. Moreover, to be able to keep my emotions out of the way while reporting.
And Estrada, an EMMY award winner for covering Haiti earthquake in 2010, proves this idea: “You get wrapped into these human elements, you do get wrapped into emotions of everything. But you have to maintain your composure, and you have to tell a good story.”
No matter what breaking news you’re covering, he continues, your job is still the same – “you have to tell a story, you have to tell a good story, and not losing focus on being a journalist.” Though he admits that it’s hard to stay focused because there might be so many good stories around you while you’re doing your breaking news assignment. His advice is to take notes for later or pass a potential story to a colleague, but stay focused and concentrated.
However, there are human stories and human beings behind any assignment first of all. How you treat victims is a significant ethical question. “All we have when we tell these stories is our word,” says Estrada, “I give them my word that I will tell the best story that we can when we go in.”
Estrada mentions that there is one ability that is essential for a journalist – an ability to listen. “You get more of the story by just listening,” says Estrada, “you learn things by just listening.” Then he continues: “The most important thing is that you allow those people to tell a story. You allow them to be able to share the grief with you. You allow them to be able to talk to you.”
The skill of listening should go along with another one that actually allows you to tell a story – writing. “The most important [skill] whether you’re on air, whether you’re a producer, whether you’re a writer, whether you’re a desk assistant, whether you’re writing for .com, the most important thing for being a successful person in broadcast journalism is being able to write,” says Estrada. Not even mentioning print or online reporters.
But the most challenging thing in our fast-paced world, where everybody wants to be the first, and the stakes are high, is to be accurate. “The most important thing about what we do,” says Estrada, “is getting the stories right. You have to be right.”
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