On The Torture Beat
Posted on | February 17, 2009 |
For three weeks now I have been covering stories related to torture. With little time and no leads on sources, I did a good job with a story on Obama and the rendition program. Rendition, a Human Rights Watch director told me, means different things to different people. John Hamilton and I spent over an over editing my piece to get the slippery language of rendition tacked down. After hearing Amy Goodman cover rendition later in the week and use one of my same sources, he felt my story was spot-on. Just before my story we ran a piece on investigating Cheney and trying to release justifications for torture.
2/2 Audio: Obama and Rendition
Because of that piece, they sent me to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, one beneath the Supreme Court, to cover a high profile rendition case involving the ACLU’s clients Mohamed and five other victims of rendition and torture and the DOJ defending the private firm Jeppeson Dataplane, a subsidiary of Boeing based in San Jose. On the way into the court room I met a John Schwartz, a reporter from the New York Times. His article appeared on page A12.
(This story I don’t have the anchor’s intro for. We had aired several things about Obama that night and then the anchor gives background on the case. Mohamed et al vs. Jeppeson Dataplane. Obama says he would end torture.)
2/9 Audio: Jeppeson Case at Ninth Circuit
Yesterday, the assignment editor set up an interview for me (very nice! made my day easy) with the only member of the International Commission on Jurists panel that was not in Europe or traveling. I have the anchor introducing the story in this audio. When I checked the BBC website, this was one of the top three stories. Cool. Goldman gave me a twenty minute interview–twice what I spend with someone on a regular story with 3 or 4 interviews.
2/16 Audio: ICJ Report on Terrorism Policy
Critiques and criticism are always welcome. If you want more info, email me at jared@jareducation.com.
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One Response to “On The Torture Beat”
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February 21st, 2009 @ 12:09 am
This is great stuff, Jared!
I am super excited about your burgeoning radio journalism career.
may your reading inform your questions.
may your questions inform the public.
may your career reflect an increasing intrusion into the minds and deeds of those who affect more than themselves.
may you query where conscience may be lacking or suppressed. may you represent the under-represented and press their case in the public medium.
if the hard work that leads to these stories drains your enthusiasm, may my (and others!) pride of you replenish it. You are doing a great work!
onto the next one…