A Mental Picture is Worth a Thousand Words: the Dangers of International Reporting for Journalists

Author

Lydia FielderFollow

Date of Graduation

5-2018

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Degree Level

Undergraduate

Department

Journalism

Advisor/Mentor

King, Tiffany

Committee Member/Reader

King, Tiffany

Committee Member/Second Reader

Ledbetter, Robyn

Committee Member/Third Reader

Murdock, Jeffrey

Committee Member/Fourth Reader

Mixdorf, Corey

Abstract

This study assesses the impact of international reporting on journalists’ physical and mental health. Previous research focuses almost exclusively on the quantitative prevalence of mental health issues in professional journalists. This study advances understanding of qualitative effects of international reporting.

The project is motivated by three research questions: (1) What are the impacts on journalists while abroad? (2) How is daily life back home affected after journalistic work abroad? (3) What resources are available to journalists who are suffering from mental health impacts? To examine these questions, the research culminates in a three-part documentary film.

Using in-depth interviews with a freelance journalist and experts from the Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma and Committee to Protect Journalists, it explores the humanistic ways journalists suffer from their work. The findings suggest that international journalists are in physical danger of things like bombings and kidnappings and are also at risk for mental health issues, particularly PTSD.

The results, implications for the profession, and future research are discussed.

Streaming Media

Keywords

journalism and PTSD, journalism and trauma, international journalism, international reporting, war reporting, Dart Center

Citation

Fielder, L. (2018). A Mental Picture is Worth a Thousand Words: the Dangers of International Reporting for Journalists. Journalism Undergraduate Honors Theses Retrieved from https://scholarworks.uark.edu/jouruht/5