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Photo by Jay Seawell

Bloomington-based journalist Doug Wissing has reported from Kabul, Afghanistan. He plans to write a book about his experiences.

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For Bloomington journalist Douglas Wissing, being a war correspondent is all about being able to open doors, not close them.

Back from a trip to Afghanistan to on report military efforts to develop agriculture in a war zone, he shared his experiences with Professor Emerita Carol Polsgrove’s J501 Public Affairs Reporting students Tuesday.

Describing why he went to Afghanistan, Wissing said he met an Indiana National Guard unit and spent a few hours listening to their plans to develop sustainable agriculture in Afghanistan. The talk shattered Wissing’s expectations of the group and spurred him to follow them to Kabul.

“I met these amazingly reasoned people,” Wissing said.

He reported from Kabul, one of the most violent province sin Afghanistan.

“Things were blowing up there a lot,” he said.

While he was embedded, he followed the Indiana group of hybrid soldiers who were connected with sustainable development while also in combat.

Wissing said war correspondence entails more than employing basic journalism skills in a new country. Reporters must supply their own equipment and safety gear, travel on their own to the army base, and, in Wissing’s experience, stay in hotels that are surrounded by armed guards.

Photo by Jay Seawell

Wissing said an underreported story is how soldiers deal with war after they return home.

Wissing said what happens when a soldier’s tour is over is an underreported story. Soldiers often deal with what Wissing called the “deep psychic trauma of killing people.”

Wissing’s work has been featured in GlobalPost, Indianapolis Monthly and other magazines, as well as on public radio and the BBC. He is writing a book based on his reporting experience, tentatively titled The Perfect War.

The students are working on their own stories for the class and have hosted several guest speakers who cover public affairs. In addition to Wissing, they heard from alumni Jeremy Kryt, who is reporting from Honduras; 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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