Covering Protests: A brief guide

Newswriting basicsDescribe what you seeTalk to peopleBackgroundStaying safe  •  Examples of good reporting

Chicago, the day after. November 9, 2016. Photo: considered sources.com  

Observe the basics of news reporting

Different ways to cover a protest
A quick take: Just one photo – with a paragraph of description (what the protest was about, who was protesting, how many people). Even if you don’t have a camera or aren’t a photographer … use your cell phone.
A news story: Either a short report of a few paragraphs or a full-length article of 700-800 words.  A short report can just have the basic info. – better if you can add one quote or one interesting detail. In a longer article, describe! Say what it was like to be there — capture the look and sounds of the protest both in words and if possible in photos. Talk to organizers, participants, bystanders and quote them.
In-depth: A feature story, focusing on individual or group, with interview material; or,  a commentary or an  analysis, using reporting to develop an idea about the event or the people organizing it.
Photo essay/slide-show: Tell the story in photos. Be sure to get info for captions, including names and maybe affiliation or some other identifying detail for a participant in a portrait. Go for photos that say something about the event or people; drama/action; humor. But wait — video is good too, even cell-phone video (3-5 minutes). And remember to spell the names right, and be careful not to mix the wrong names with photos.

A few notes on form

The “lede”: It can be a summary lead (who, what, when, where, why, how —  some of those details up front); or it can be one interesting detail to engage the reader – a quote from a speaker or demonstrator or sign, a focus on one interesting or representative participant, or any interesting detail that reveals something about the story. If the lede doesn’t make the focus of the story clear, be sure to follow up with a “nut graf.”
Style: Write in an objective, descriptive, third-person style. The people there are the story, the reporter is the observer. (Of course, this is not a rule. If you’re writing for the Chicago Reader, first-person writing is the norm.)
Opinion? If you’re writing a news story and not an opinion piece, quote the opinions of people there. Save yours for another time.
Images: Take cell-phone photos, short video, if you don’t have a better camera. Do it even if you aren’t a skilled photographer. We’re not National Geographic.
Audio: So you can cut down on your note-taking, use a cell-phone or audio recorder — but back this up with note-taking. (Your recording may fail, and writing a story from notes is a lot faster; use your recording to get accurate quotes and identifications of speakers, including spelling of names.) Rely exclusively on note-taking if that’s easier for you; note-taking is a fine tradition.

Describe what you see

The organizers: One group, or a coalition of groups?   Spokespersons? Some quotes from the speeches? (Sometimes you can check for the speeches on Youtube later. If you see someone shooting video, ask where they are going to upload it.)

Activist groups present: Be aware that some groups bring a lot of their signs to pass out so they can create the illusion of a genuine presence. I am more interested in the “grass-roots” organizations or significant players such as unions — Mujeres Latinas en Acción or National Nurses United, for example. (Sometimes sects too can be part of the story, and some have played a positive role in keeping things going when no one else is paying attention; but their spokesperson may have a lot to say to you and you have other people to talk to.)

The signs: What do they say? Can you get photos? Go for signs that say what the protest is about, and also signs that are interesting or creative or just cute, even if not so relevant. The culture of the protest is part of the story. Are there signs you think should be there but aren’t? (E.g., you are at an anti-Trump protest on the day after a cruise missile strike in Syria or more shiploads of arms to Saudi Arabia for use in Yemen … and yet you see no antiwar signs, or maybe only one. What is missing can be significant.)

The crowd: Old, young, social, racial and gender makeup? Is there a large student representation? (Activist youth are important in movements.) Do demonstrators have signs identifying their affiliation?

Photo pointers

Photo and article: Shoot many photos and select from them later, but take notes so you will have informative and accurate captions (see below for more on captions). You may have two or three photos to accompany the article, but if you want to do a photo essay/slide show, you will have to do some more reporting for the captions.

Angle: Take photos from the front of the crowd not the rear — get faces and protest signs from the front.
Take photos of people you interview and be sure to get identifying information and correct spelling of names for captions.

Focus: Shoot signs, people, action, performances and guerrilla theater; look for images that say something or are unusual, interesting, or unexpected.

Individuals: Take photos of individuals and get their names and stories. Who? Someone like our readers, someone unlike. If the crowd is diverse, show the diversity.

Signs: Look for signs that explain the protest or are creative. The printed signs passed out by organizations are part of the story — you want to know who is there, but realize that some organizations will bring many people (unions, community action groups) and some just bring a lot of signs.

Art: Shoot all the artwork you can and anything that’s creative — signs, effigies, sculptures, costumes and make-up.

Captions: Captions should be informative — so there is no point in a caption that repeats the headline or information in the lead (e.g., “Marchers protest against ___” in every caption). Use captions to add information, comment on what the photo shows, identify participants with more than their name. The chances are that if you just take photos and don’t do some research on the event and issues, and if you don’t talk to some people, you will have difficulty writing captions.

Here are two examples of photo essays by Georgia Hampton. They include some excellent basic reporting on the protests, published as stand-alone slide shows in F Newsmagazine. Note that the photographer has done the equivalent of a news article in her string of photo captions — telling an engaging story about the protest, explaining it as well as simply registering the 5 W’s.

Photo Essay: Lyric Opera Musicians Rally

Photo Essay: Chicago Responds to the Van Dyke Verdict.

Talk to people and get quotes.

Our rule of thumb: Quote one person in a news short, three people at least in a short report, but try for more in a longer one. The people are the story.

  • Find spokespersons or the organizers. (Look around the speakers’ platforms, ask people there who can talk to press.) In an apparently “leaderless” demonstration, find the experienced and articulate activists.
  • Talk to some of the people in the crowd. Some sample questions: Ask them why they are there, what they want, why it matters, how did they find out about this event (maybe their answer will tell you if they have an organizational affiliation – union, NGO, community, political or movement group); is this the first time they are demonstrating/marching, how they would explain the issue and how it affects them personally, how they think their demands can be won (what do people need to do); what they think the chances of winning their demands.
  • Avoid lazy and prejudicial quotes — like the typical quote in an election campaign rally, where the reporter has found someone to say something uneducated and stereotypical. (The elitist reporter reminds us how ignorant and stupid the electorate is or wants to get you involved in the story by winding you up.)
  • Be careful to get people’s names with correct spelling, titles if appropriate, brief identification if you can (art student, retiree, social worker,  professor at … ). Try to get names for captions; be careful to spell the names correctly and not to mix up the names in the captions (common errors).

Background: Explain the issue and the protest

  • Do some web searching before and after the event.
  • Who are the protesters? Organizations? A coalition of groups or one group? Who do they claim to represent?
  • Who supports them or who do they think they can appeal to for support (what is their social base)?
  • What are the demonstrators protesting?
  • Who and what are the targets?
  • What are their goals or demands?
  • Who opposes their goals or demands and what would it take for their demands to be met (e.g., act of Congress, state legislature or city council? Change in a company or institution?)

Stay safe and know your rights

Wear comfortable clothing, sensible shoes, appropriate for street fighting. Delacroix, Liberty Leading the People.1833. Wikipedia. The “journalist” (a Delacroix selfie) is the one with the hunting gun; notepad carried securely in the top hat. To the right of Liberté, with two pistols: a student revolutionary.

News media — and, even more, TV drama — often focus on violence or arrests at protests. But normally, non-violent protests in major cities are quite safe. Police behavior reflects city policy; so, for example, major cities with large Democratic majorities and mayors are unlikely to move against large and popular protests against Trump policies. After the police murder of Laquan McDonald, Chicago, like many cities, tolerated massive disruption by Black Lives Matter activists, even in relatively small groups — but Milwaukee County’s sheriff David Clarke didn’t. Cities responded differently after the murder of George Floyd, when they met massive demonstrations with brutal police attacks and also responded to looting and vandalism (or didn’t, depending on the neighborhood). Know your city and its officials.

Some basic rules for safety and comfort

Don’t get paranoid, remember there is safety in numbers. But these suggestions may help you feel confident and relaxed if you are new to demonstrations.

  • Go to protests with friends and stay connected.
  • Write the number of your local ACLU (312.201.9740) or National Lawyers Guild office (312.913.0039) on your arm.
  • Wear comfortable and protective clothing that is easy to run in. No high heels.
  • Make sure your cell phone or camera batteries are fully charged.
  • Stay with the crowds, don’t be the last to leave a protest, especially if it’s a small one.
  • Rare problem, but sometimes an “action faction” will split off in a more militant march or will plan on civil disobedience. Decide if you want to join them. If you want to avoid arrest, stay clear.

Some helpful information if you want to be super-prepared or nerdy.

Examples of good protest reporting

“Thousands of protesters brand McDonald’s the ‘Trump of corporations,'”  by Kari Lydersen. The Guardian, May 24, 2017. Lydersen understands the issues, because she’s been covering them for years. If you’re interested in social justice reporting, follow her work in the Guardian, The Reader, and In These Times, and other news media. And read her book, essential for understanding Chicago politics: Mayor 1%: Rahm Emanuel and the Rise of Chicago’s 99%.

“‘Black Lives Matter – Not Black Friday’: Protesters Block Shoppers, Scuffle with Police.” Chicago Sun-Times. June 24, 2016. Some of the quotes reflect the reporter’s dry sense of humor.

Poorly informed or lazy reporters get the story wrong. Read this instructive correction of reports on violence at a Berkeley protest: “The Violent Clashes In Berkeley Weren’t ‘Pro-Trump’ Versus ‘Anti-Trump,”  by Natasha Lennard.  Esquire, April 16, 2017.

Democracy Now often has good reporting on protests. They make a point of selecting activists representing groups for their interviews, which typically give clear explanations of the events. Some examples:

“#CLEoverRNC: Protesters Expose Tale of Two Clevelands.” Democracy Now! Accessed January 19, 2017.

 “Activists Block RNC Entrance with Mock Border Wall So Trump’s Hate ‘Won’t Reach Our Communities.’” Democracy Now!Accessed January 19, 2017.
“Police Pepper Spray, Arrest Protesters Marching on UN Climate Summit as Hundreds Inside Stage Walkout.” Democracy Now! Accessed January 19, 2017.
Here’s my favorite consideredsources.com  protest photo:

“Cats Against Trump” and “We Will Overcomb.” Protest at University of Illinois-Chicago Pavillion, April 3, 2016. The kids scared Trump away. Photo: Consideredsources.com (CC BY 2.0).

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