Why We Wrote This
Who reports the news? People. And at 海角大神, we believe that it鈥檚 our job to report each story with a sense of shared humanity. Through conversations with our reporters and editors, we explain the qualities behind our reporting that affect how we approach the news. Behind today鈥檚 headlines we find respect, resilience, dignity, agency, and hope. 鈥淲hy We Wrote This鈥� shows how. The Monitor is an award-winning, nonpartisan news organization with bureaus around the globe. Visit CSMonitor.com/whywewrotethis to learn more.
Sowing Agency in Malawi
How much more effective is journalism when its practitioners take extra care to account for local perspectives and practices? And what does it mean when media organizations stay with their stories over time? Xanthe Scharff鈥檚 reporting in Malawi in 2005 and then again this year helps answer both questions. She and her recent colleague Madalo Samati 鈥� a mentor Xanthe met when she shifted from reporting to actively participating 鈥� spoke with guest host Amelia Newcomb.
Mideast鈥檚 Makers of Change
How does a Mideast reporter find, amid recurring conflict, stories loaded with humanity and shared values? Amman-based Taylor Luck, a return guest on this podcast, works to balance credible hope and the cycle of setbacks wrought by hard regional realities. He spoke to host Clay Collins about a generation bent on bringing change 鈥� and about what he鈥檚 seen while producing datelines from Tunisia to the West Bank.
A Reporting Team鈥檚 Supreme Test
Charges of politicization are nothing new. But what goes into keeping Supreme Court reporting fair at a time when the justices themselves are making headlines over issues of ethics? Writer Henry Gass and his editor, Yvonne Zipp, join guest host Gail Chaddock for a look at covering the sometimes surprising session that just ended 鈥� staying glued to SCOTUSblog and reporting smart stories ahead of decisions from the places where the human impact of those rulings is most acutely felt.
Resilience: Inside the 鈥極ther China鈥�
In rural China, millions of elderly farmers are getting by despite a dwindling government pension reserve. In some ways, it鈥檚 a story of desperation. But on a reporting swing deep into northern Shaanxi province, the Monitor鈥檚 Ann Scott Tyson found it also to be one of resilience, perseverance, and agency. She spoke to guest host and show producer Jingnan Peng.
Reckoning With Reparations
A long-awaited report to California鈥檚 legislature by a reparations task force is fueling broader conversations, at institutions and among individuals. The Monitor鈥檚 commitment to exploring the issues means considering 鈥� fairly and factually 鈥� a wide range of views. In this episode, writers Maisie Sparks and Clara Germani speak with guest host Trudy Palmer about how the work of recording perspectives and changes of heart shaped their own understanding of this complex story of justice, dignity, and transformation.
The Compassion Solution
You don鈥檛 know everything that someone is capable of just from a single observation or interaction. That鈥檚 the core idea behind the anti-bullying work of Shadi Pourkashef. She delivers on it with a very intentional focus shift: from problem to solution. The Monitor鈥檚 JJ Wahlberg spoke with host Clay Collins about reporting 鈥� for her first Monitor story 鈥� on one shining exhibition of the power of kindness.
War Stories, Part 2
With much of the world鈥檚 attention on the cold wins-and-losses scorecard of Russia鈥檚 grinding war in Ukraine, and with a counteroffensive reportedly underway, how are Ukrainian civilians holding up? Scott Peterson has now reported from the conflict zone a half-dozen times. For this updated, encore episode of his February show, 鈥淲ar Stories,鈥� he stopped by our Boston newsroom and spoke with host Clay Collins.
The Politics of Trans Care
A once largely invisible minority, transgender people have swiftly moved into the mainstream of popular culture, and some conservatives appear intent on stoking a social and political backlash, particularly among older voters. Writer Simon Montlake talks about bringing fairness to the fore in coverage of a rights issue on which two sides鈥� stances are so fundamentally different. Hosted by Gail Russell Chaddock.
An Oil Giant Sees Green
Does the promise of a big push into afforestation and renewable energy point to an authentically 鈥済reening鈥� Saudi Arabia? To an open quest for an edge in an emerging global market? To both of those things? Our Amman, Jordan-based writer describes the careful listening that went into the reporting of a counternarrative cover story that鈥檚 really all about balance and transformation. Hosted by Clay Collins.
The Power of Porches
Americans鈥� loss of social connection has long been an issue, and it worsened during the pandemic to the point where loneliness has now hit epidemic levels. In this episode we talk about why we wrote a kind of antidote story 鈥� one about front-porch culture and the power of people to collectively make their lives a bit richer. Hosted by Clay Collins.