What I’m Reading
September 20, 2022
What I’m Reading returns with a striking story about press freedom from the streets of Nicaragua. The second recommendation celebrates India’s 75th anniversary. And the final story shows us Ukraine through the eyes of Ukrainian photographers.
Press Freedom at Stake
The beginning of today’s recommendations is reserved for a riveting story about the sad trend that journalism has become a profession under threat across the world.
‘Not even Orwell could have dreamed up a country like this’: Journalists flee Nicaragua is a beautifully written story by Kate Linthicum (with equally beautiful photography by Gary Coronado). The reporting duo tells us about Nicaragua, a country we don’t read enough about in the news.
The story opens with an investigative reporter from Nicaragua who decided to flee the country because “his latest reporting had led him dangerously close to President Daniel Ortega.” Together with his family, he decided that fleeing was the only option he had left. He didn’t see an alternative if he wanted to continue his reporting. Suddenly, the journalist was one of the about 200,000 Nicaraguans who had fled their country since 2018.
This exemplary piece of journalism serves as a reminder of the recent history of Nicaragua: a country on the poor side of the economic spectrum, riddled with corruption and ruled by a former leftist revolutionary who governs with an iron fist. Opponents and everyone who can pose a threat to his power land in prison. That includes journalists.
Linthicum follows the paths of two more journalists in exile. There’s a journalist who decided to flee after being attacked by the police at a protest. One of his colleagues was killed at the time, and the police started occupying newsrooms and arresting journalists. He returned a few years later, opened another paper, and eventually fled a second time.
Finally, we hear about a woman who became a political prisoner because of her work exposing human rights abuse.
I highly recommend this story. It’s an effortless read with lots of detail and color. It’s an important story, as the passages on the global situation remind us. In many countries, journalism has become a very dangerous occupation.
Happy Birthday, India
I break up the two heavier stories with a Reuters picture gallery called India celebrates 75 years of independence.
There isn’t much to say. Click on the link and enjoy a colorful look at the festivities and India’s culture. Next to a healthy punch of color and uncountable flags, the pictures include creative portraits and stunning cityscapes. I love the picture of the Gateway of India, a structure in Mumbai that was lit in the nation’s colors, for example.
The Local Perspective
A large part of the foreign stories in western newspapers is told from an outside perspective of western journalists stopping by for a while to report. In recent years, efforts to enable locals to tell the stories of their countries from a local perspective have increased.
Times Magazine shares the stories of five Ukrainians who cover their country’s struggle. Sanya Mansoor and the Time photo department prepared ‘How Could I Not Show This to the World?’ 5 Ukrainian Photographers on Turning Their Cameras to the War, which includes interview observations from conversations with the photographers and some of their pictures.
Published back in April 2022, the photographers Oksana Parafeniuk, Evgeniy Maloletka, Serhii Korovainyi, Julia Kochetova, and Mykhaylo Palinchak share the pictures they can’t forget.
The observations include what they see and feel — out reporting, and on a more personal level. I love that we hear directly from local journalists about how they manage life and work under the circumstances.
My favorite pictures here, as with conflict pictures in general, are the quiet ones. Sometimes a graphic rendering of a scene is justified and necessary. But the quiet frames that only hint at the violence and instead focus on the humanity are the most powerful depictions of war.
I hope you can spend some time with this article and look at their work and listen to their observations. It’s as powerful as journalism gets.
That’s all for today’s reading updates. Later in the week, I’ll have another post from my series on all things journalism, photography, and writing. Until then, enjoy your readings.
