The Future of Foreign Correspondence at Durham and the IAS

Earlier this year, as I stood before members and affiliates of the IAS to present my work as part of this year’s Sir Harry Evans Fellowship, I wasn't quite prepared for how quickly “here's what I found” would turn into “wait, how did you not get killed?" My reporting had revealed a brazen campaign of organized crime and political influence in Palau, a geopolitical battleground between America and China in the Pacific, that featured triad leaders from Macau, methamphetamine smugglers from mainland China, and intelligence operations by the U.S. To me, it was an exciting but familiar area of work. To the seminar audience, I realised, it was a very different world. 

That is the beauty of the IAS, which routinely brings together thinkers and researchers covering every possible area of inquiry. That diversity of thinking was reflected in the subsequent questions, which ranged from broader inquiries about the appropriate role of foreign correspondents to the granular details of source protection in small communities. The resulting conversation was refreshing, allowing the room to grapple with the balance between the public's right to know and the risks to sources in communities where everyone literally knows everyone. Interrogating my instincts with a room full of sharp academics was clarifying and produced insights that I will take into all my work going forward. 

It was just one element of the refreshing and exciting conversations I had as part of my fellowship. Best of all were the dozens of conversations I had with students interested in journalism and hungry for practical advice about building careers in a challenging profession. We talked about everything from how to break into the industry, to cultivating sources who might not trust outsiders, to finding sustainable funding models for slow-burn investigative work that doesn't fit neatly into daily news cycles. It was a deeply rewarding way to give back -- even though I still feel I’m not too distant from their position starting out in our industry! 

The fellowship also gave me something that is increasingly rare in journalism: uninterrupted time to think. Not just about my next deadline, but about where journalism is heading, what responsible coverage looks like, and where I want to prioritise my attention and investigative effort going forward. I’m so grateful to the IAS and Durham for the opportunity to think and reflect in that way. I’ve since left the university with a much broader view of the ethics of journalism, several new investigative projects in various stages of development, and a renewed excitement for the work that investigative reporters do. 

Also, I now have several new ideas about additional personal safety protocols. Just in case!