REPORT: Notes from Pratap Chatterjee, SPJ speaker
Another in the “Notes From…” series. Many thanks to Kat McGrory for
volunteering to write this set. If you have notes to share from event
around school or elsewhere, pass them along.
NOTES FROM… SPJ Evening with Pratap Chatterjee
Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2005
By Kathleen McGrory, SPJ Secretary
E-mail: kmm2152@columbia.edu
An Evening with Pratap Chatterjee
Society of Professional Journalists, Columbia University Chapter
Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, Room 601C
September 20, 2005, 5-7 p.m.
Pratap Chatterjee is the managing editor of CorpWatch, a watchdog group
that is critical of corporations. The organization’s website -
http://www.corpwatch.com - is home to news, investigative pieces and
analysis on the subject.
Chatterjee also recently published “Iraq, Inc.: A Profitable Occupation,”
his investigative report on corporations in Iraq during the first year of
occupation. For more information on the book, see
http://www.sevenstories.com/Book/index.cfm?GCOI=58322100484530.
In addition, Chatterjee has worked in print, radio and digital
media. He hosts a weekly radio show on the Berkely station KPFA and
also works as a correspondent for the InterPress Service.
In a nutshell:
Chatterjee discussed his new book “Iraq, Inc.: A Profitable
Occupation,” the investigative process (including a handful of
helpful tips, see below), and the world of alternative media.
In detail:
Chatterjee began by describing “Iraq, Inc.: A Profitable
Occupation.” He said he approached the book as a financial
journalist, eager to investigate the various industries and
corporations in American-occupied Iraq. Chatterjee said the
companies were reluctant to talk to him. “If they are open to
public scrutiny then they are subject to trouble,” he said. “If you
have a history of being an activist or progressive or even critical,
then they don’t want to talk to you.” This being so, the bulk of his
information came from “whistleblowers on the ground,” locals, many
of whom were employed by foreign corporations, that were willing to
talk. He expanded on this when discussing tips for investigative
reporting.
Chatterjee also noted that he often subscribes to tradition of new
journalism. “Putting the journalist in the story, especially in the
case of Iraq, adds color to the piece.”
In discussing his book, Chatterjee offered the following tips for
investigative reporting:
• Spend a lot of time on the ground talking to people. They will
often be your best sources.
• Be persistant. People will often tell you “no.” You get the
information by continually pushing.
• Go there. Don’t just make phone calls. While attempting to write a
story on the training of interrogators, Chatterjee was initially
rebuffed by U.S. Military officials. Chatterjee then just showed up
at the Southern Arizona base where the training too place. He was
ultimately given access. [A great read:
http://www.ipsnews.net/interna.asp?idnews=27860 ]
• Be enterprising. Think Seymour Hirsch.
• Know people on the inside. “You have to be embedded, but not in
the way the military wants you to be embedded. Know people.”
Insiders make great sources.
• Wherever you go, take as many notes as possible. Note what you ate
that day, what you saw, how you felt. You’ll be able to recall
details and make sense of your notes better. “No level of detail
should escape you.”
• Be happy with yourself if you find another story than the one you
set out to write. Go forward with an open mind. Don’t worry so much
about proving your thesis.
• Draw flow charts to put things together. And know that you’ll
often put things together wrong.
• Be patient. Remember that investigative reporting isn’t news
reporting. A good piece could take months to complete. That means
you might miss a good story or two. (Chatterjee was in Iraq
reporting on corporations when Saddam Hussein was arrested in
Tikrit. He chose not to cover that story in order to remain focused
on his investigative piece. He also skipped out on another excursion
to Falljuah in which his buddies ended up getting kidnapped. You win
some, you lose some.)
• Focus, focus, focus.
• Know your beat well.
• Protect, cultivate and love your sources. People won’t tell you
stories unless they know you and they trust you. (Chatterjee once
helped a homeless source find a place to live. He tends to get very
involved with the subjects of his stories.)
• Be creative. Sometimes you need others to get the information on
your behalf (especially if you are a well-known critic).
Chatterjee then discussed CorpWatch and the alternative media.
CorpWatch is by a small group of private investors who are
interested in investigative reporting. Chatterjee noted that he
spends most of his time fundraising. He spends only a quarter of
his time as an investigative journalist.
He added that there is very little money in alternative media. One way to make
money is to go across media. That is, sell a piece in print and then sell it
for radio or television. Another way is to be very enterprising — go where the
other reporters simply aren’t willing to go. Chatterjee also suggested making
your own media a la David Enders in “Baghdad Bulletin” [
http://www.press.umich.edu/titleDetailDesc.do?id=100388 ].
On the beauty of technology: “If you re willing to put in the time
and you believe in your story, you can put it out there relatively
cheaply.” Websites cost only a few dollars a month.
On reading CorpWatch: “All of our articles are available online. We
want people to steal our stuff.”
Chatterjee then took questions from the audience. See summaries
below.
Q: Do you worry about having such a narrow audience?
Chatterjee responded that his stories often get picked up by the
mainstream media, although Chatterjee himself is usually used as a
background source. “The information is getting out there, even if
it isn’t getting published under my name,” he said. “So even if my
name isn’t on the piece, the piece is still out there and the
change still occurs. I’m happy about that.” Chatterjee went on to
describe the difficulties of being “completely out-classed” by the
mainstream media. He also noted his frustration that stories
carried by alternative sources often do not make the mainstream
news.
Q: If you were in the Bush Administration, what would you have done
differently in Iraq?
Chatterjee said he would have hired more experienced companies,
noting that many of the businesses currently in Iraq have no prior
experience and are thieves. “If I was a Republican, which I’m not,
I’d make sure there was transparency and accountability, and hire
people with a track record in this business before.” He also said
he disagrees with hiring American workers to work in Iraq in lieu
of giving jobs to Iraqis.
Q: What do you think about blogs?
On the whole, he is skeptical. “There are good blogs. There are bad
blogs. There are people that just rant and get their information
out there.” According to Chatterjee, the “good blogs” are those
with good information that will be able to stand the test of time —
links often expire, rendering blogs past-their-time.
He ended by noting that CorpWatch is always looking for freelancers.
They publish every week and pay $500 an article - “that’s more than
the San Francisco Chronicle pays!”
Chatterjee is looking for four things:
• Color: He especially likes stories told in the new journalistic
tradition. Think Rolling Stone.
• Context: Why is this issue important?
• Corporation: Talk to someone inside the corporation, not just PR.
• Community: How does the issue actually affect people’s lives?
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