Becki Schildhouse | June 12, 2010
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“A bulletproof vest is not a bad idea here,” said Kryt, BAJ ’97, who spoke to Professor Emerita Carol Polsgrove’s J501 Public Affairs Reporting class Wednesday by phone from Honduras.
Kryt’s work has been published in In These Times, Earth Island Journal and the Huffington Post, among others, and his reporting has taken him to dangerous areas to cover conflict.
Recounting a time when a journalist standing next to him was shot and injured while covering a story, Kryt described why protective gear can be a good idea. In the 25 minute call, stories of death squads kidnapping and murdering innocent citizens, political corruption and an ex-president in exile brought the situation in Central America to the forefront of conversation.
After a quick briefing on the military-backed coup that forced than democratically-elected president Manuel Zelaya into exile last year, Kryt shared his experiences of covering the corrupt administration of current president Porfirio “Pepe” Lobo.
When covering an untrustworthy government, Kryt said, reporters should be upfront with sources about the focus of the story and begin with friendly conversation. He said to ask about what school they went to, to treat them professionally and to ask the hard questions at the end of the interview.
“Sometimes it’s good to let those official sources skewer themselves” Kryt said.
By the end of the talk, Kryt might not have convinced the four students to hop on a plane for Honduras when the summer session ends, but he did show the future journalists that there are important stories out in the world that need to be told. Just bring your gas mask and bulletproof vest.
The students are working on their own stories for the class and have hosted several guest speakers who cover public affairs. In addition to Kryt, they heard from Bloomington-based reporter Doug Wissing, who has been embedded with the military in Afghanistan; alumnus Jonathan Hiskes, who works for Grist, an environmental news website; Daniel Robison, assistant news director, WFIU; Steve Higgs, publisher/editor, Bloomington Alternative; and Andy Graham, education reporter, Herald-Times.
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