BASIC REPORTING PROGRAM 3

Writing for an international reader

Keep the “international reader” in mind when thinking of your story idea and how you are going to report and write it.

But who is this “international reader”?

The UCA News website is read by people not only in your own country but also in other countries in Asia and further afield in Europe and America. Many of the readers may not be familiar with the realities in your country.

What this means is that you should assume the reader of your story has virtually no idea about the subject or the country you are in. This does not mean you have to treat your reader like a 10-year-old, explaining everything in the story. But it does mean you have to supply enough simple explanation of the main points and key issues.

STORY IDEA First of all, take a look at your story idea. What might be a “hot story” where you are living in say Hong Kong might not be of interest to a reader in New Delhi or Washington. If you were living in Hong Kong, ask yourself if you would want to read about a similar incident or story in India or Indonesia?

Let's take two examples:

(a) A priest is injured after the bus he is traveling in skids off the road in the Philippines.

(b) A priest, known for his pioneering social work, is injured when the bus he is traveling in skids off the road as a result of an attack by bandits in the Philippines.

Accidents happen. Unless the priest is well-known or senior in the Church hierarchy there may not be any "international" interest in example (a). But what might make example (b) a UCA News story of international interest is, firstly, that the priest is well known for his social work and, secondly, that the bus crashed after being attacked by bandits, bandits who have hit the headlines bringing anarchy to the area.

Take a real-life story. Redemptionist Father Thomas Xavier Kocherry was knocked over by a car and beaten by alleged communist activists in southern India. What made this a story is the fact that the priest is well-known for his work with the fishing community, that it was a criminal attack, and that there is a political aspect to the attack - his attackers may have been prompted by his work for the fishing community which appeared to conflict with their own agenda of exploiting the community. This story helps to show Church reality in southern India.

When you think of a story idea, ask yourself who outside of your town, district or parish would be interested in reading about it? Is it a "local" story or an "international" story? "Local" tends to refer to a story that may only be of interest to people in the local area or parish where the event or incident took place, or is of such minor significance that is does not merit coverage.

That does not mean, however, that a “small story” might not be of interest to an international reader. For example, a local parish-run project in central Vietnam to offer tribal people in a village a supply of drinking water may seem like a local story. But such a story might offer an international reader a sense of Church reality and the social problems in this part of Vietnam.

WRITING THE STORY After you have assessed that the story might be of interest to an international reader, it is important to bear in mind this reader as you report and write the story. While you report, keep your eyes and ears open for information, quotes, anecdotes and color that will help paint a picture for the reader.

Use all the senses – sight, sounds, feelings, smells – to offer a graphic picture.

For example, you know what your local cathedral looks like but the reader does not. You know that the local nuns in this area do not wear nuns’ habits but wear local dress, but the reader does not.

So when you get down to reporting and writing the story, make sure to keep your eyes and ears open for pictures and impressions that will help a reader get a sense of the local reality.

Background and context

Make sure you put enough background and context into your story. Always assume the reader knows nothing about your country or the situation of religion in your country.

Remember to do this every time you write a story. Assume this is the first time the reader has read about your country and the situation there.

For example, you may be writing a story about religious leaders calling for an end to the death penalty in Nepal. Make sure you explain under what circumstances the death sentence is used and give an indication of how many prisoners are executed each year.

Another example might be the “underground” and official Church in China. Always make sure, even if your background explanation is only a phrase or one sentence, to convey to the reader that there is an underground and official Church in China.

Another example might be in a story about Uzbekistan. If you are writing about a Church project to help homeless people by offering them a meal twice a week, it is important to provide the background by saying either that Uzbekistan is a Muslim-majority country or that over 90 percent of the population is Muslim.

Make sure to do this in every story, though you can obviously reword the background a little every time.

Names, places and religious bodies

Always remember that what might be a commonplace name to you might not be understood by an outsider. Make sure to briefly explain local words, for example, like dalit and untouchable in India. Also make sure to explain who people are and what organizations do.

Every story stands on its own

Finally, always remember that every story should be able to stand on its own with enough background and context. Just because last month you wrote a story on an issue does not mean you can leave out the background in your new story. Always assume that the reader will only read your one story. Make sure it has all the components for it to make sense.