A journalist as their own source

A student asked me an interesting question in class today as we were discussing story ideas and sources. Is is possible for a journalist to report on an event of national importance in his/her own newsroom, like the 1990 coup or a natural disaster?

I've been thinking about it a little more and wanted to give a fuller answer. Some camps believe that a journalist should never put himself or herself in a story, while others advocate using this technique to great effect. It really does depend on the editorial policy of your media house, and how effective/accurate/verifiable your own point of view will be, and what it will add to your story.

Sometimes, the journalist's point of view makes a great lede into the story, but it shouldn't be used as true support material. In that case, it's a technique to get the reader interested in the story. TV6's Fabien Pierre used it to great effect last year during one of Port of Spain's flooding episodes. The visual of the reporter wading knee-high in floodwaters, his pants rolled up, picking his way gingerly toward the camera added colour, life and realism to the story. But nowhere in his report did he refer to himself as a victim of the floods because there was plenty of material for that from other primary sources - real commuters and motorists trying to get home through the flood waters that day.

I believe that if your personal experience can be better illustrated with someone else's story, use their story rather than your own. If you are using your experience because you can't find another source, you had better change your story idea because clearly it won't have appeal outside your immediate circle. Personal experience should be the icing on the cake of the story, rather than the butter and eggs used to build its substance. Unless your story adds something extraordinarily special to the piece, it's better to leave it out, even if the story is in your own newsroom.

Photo taken from the Trinidad Express Newspaper website, Nov. 19, 2008

Photographer: Dexter Philip