TEDxBoulder 2011
Leslie Dodson: Don't misrepresent Africa
Filmed:
Readability: 4.6
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Real narratives are complicated: Africa isn't a country, and it's not a disaster zone, says reporter and researcher Leslie Dodson. She calls for journalists, researchers and NGOs to stop representing entire continents as one big tragedy.
Leslie Dodson - Reporter
Leslie Dodson’s work has taken her from Latin America to Indonesia covering international finance, economics, and politics. Full bio
Leslie Dodson’s work has taken her from Latin America to Indonesia covering international finance, economics, and politics. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
00:08
I just want to start with a little bit
of a word of warning, and that is:
of a word of warning, and that is:
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my job here tonight is to be
a little bit of a "doctor bring-me-down."
a little bit of a "doctor bring-me-down."
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So bear with me for a few minutes,
and know that after this,
and know that after this,
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things will get lighter and brighter.
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So let's start.
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I know that many of you have heard
the traveler's adage,
the traveler's adage,
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"Take nothing but pictures,
leave nothing but footprints."
leave nothing but footprints."
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Well, I'm going to say
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I don't think that's either as benign
nor as simple as it sounds,
nor as simple as it sounds,
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particularly for those of us in industries
who are portraying people
who are portraying people
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in poor countries,
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in developing countries
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and portraying the poor.
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And those of us in those industries
are reporters, researchers
are reporters, researchers
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and people working for NGOs;
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I suspect there are a lot of us
in those industries in the audience.
in those industries in the audience.
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We're going overseas
and bringing back pictures like this:
and bringing back pictures like this:
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of the utterly distressed
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or the displaced
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or the hungry
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or the child laborers
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or the exotic.
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Now, Susan Sontag reminds us
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that photographs, in part, help define
what we have the right to observe,
what we have the right to observe,
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but more importantly,
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they are an ethics of seeing.
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And I think right now is a good time
to review our ethics of seeing,
to review our ethics of seeing,
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as our industries of reporting
and research and NGO work
and research and NGO work
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are collapsing and changing,
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in part, by what's being driven by
what's happening in the economy.
what's happening in the economy.
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But it's making us forge
new relationships.
new relationships.
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And those new relationships
have some fuzzy boundaries.
have some fuzzy boundaries.
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I worked at the edge
of some of these fuzzy boundaries,
of some of these fuzzy boundaries,
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and I want to share with you
some of my observations.
some of my observations.
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My ethics of seeing is informed
by 25 years as a reporter
by 25 years as a reporter
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covering emerging economies
and international relations.
and international relations.
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And I believe in a free
and independent press.
and independent press.
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I believe that journalism
is a public good.
is a public good.
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But it's getting harder to do that job,
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in part, because of the massive layoffs,
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because the budgets for international
reporting aren't there anymore,
reporting aren't there anymore,
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new technologies and new platforms
begging new content,
begging new content,
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and there are a lot of new journalisms.
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There's activist journalism,
humanitarian journalism, peace journalism,
humanitarian journalism, peace journalism,
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and we are all looking to cover
the important stories of our time.
the important stories of our time.
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So we're going to NGOs and asking them
if we can embed in their projects.
if we can embed in their projects.
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This is in part because they're doing
important work in interesting places.
important work in interesting places.
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That's one example here:
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this is a project I worked on
in the Blue Nile in Ethiopia.
in the Blue Nile in Ethiopia.
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NGOs understand the benefits
of having reporters tag along
of having reporters tag along
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on their team.
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They need the publicity,
they are under tremendous pressure,
they are under tremendous pressure,
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they're competing in a very crowded
market for compassion.
market for compassion.
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So they're also looking to reporters
and to hire freelance reporters
and to hire freelance reporters
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to help them develop
their public relations material
their public relations material
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and their media material.
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Now, researchers are also under pressure.
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They're under pressure to communicate
their science outside of the academy.
their science outside of the academy.
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So they're collaborating with reporters,
because for many researchers,
because for many researchers,
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it's difficult for them
to write a simple story or a clear story.
to write a simple story or a clear story.
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And the benefit for reporters
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is that covering field research
is some of the best work out there.
is some of the best work out there.
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You not only get to cover science,
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but you get to meet
interesting scientists,
interesting scientists,
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like my PhD advisor Revi Sterling,
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she, of the magic research
high tops there.
high tops there.
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And it was a discussion with Revi
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that brought us to the edge
of the researcher and reporter,
of the researcher and reporter,
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that fuzzy boundary.
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And I said to her,
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"I was looking forward
to going to developing countries
to going to developing countries
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and doing research and covering stories
at the same time."
at the same time."
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She said, "I don't think so, girlfriend."
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And that confusion, that mutual confusion,
drove us to publish a paper
drove us to publish a paper
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on the conflicting ethics
and the contradictory practices
and the contradictory practices
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of research and reporting.
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We started with the understanding
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that researchers and reporters
are distant cousins,
are distant cousins,
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equally storytellers and social analysts.
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But we don't see nor portray
developing communities the same way.
developing communities the same way.
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Here's a very classic example.
This is Somalia, 1992.
This is Somalia, 1992.
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It could be Somalia today.
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And this is a standard operating procedure
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for much of the news video
and the news pictures that you see,
and the news pictures that you see,
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where a group of reporters
will be trucked in,
will be trucked in,
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escorted to the site of a disaster,
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they'll produce their material,
take their pictures, get their interviews,
take their pictures, get their interviews,
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and then they'll be escorted out.
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This is decidedly not a research setting.
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Now, sometimes, we're working
on feature stories.
on feature stories.
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This is an image I took of a woman
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in Bhongir Village
in Andhra Pradesh in India.
in Andhra Pradesh in India.
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She's at a microfinance meeting.
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It's a terrific story.
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What's important here
is that she is identifiable.
is that she is identifiable.
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You can see her face.
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This also is not a research picture.
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This is much more representative
of a research picture.
of a research picture.
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It's a research site: you see young women
accessing new technologies.
accessing new technologies.
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It's more of a time stamp,
it's a documentation of research.
it's a documentation of research.
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I couldn't use this for news.
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It doesn't tell enough,
and it wouldn't sell.
and it wouldn't sell.
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But then, the differences
are even deeper than that.
are even deeper than that.
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Revi and I analyzed some of the mandates
that researchers are under.
that researchers are under.
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They are under some very strict rules
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governed by their university
research review boards
research review boards
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when it comes to content
and confidentiality.
and confidentiality.
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Researchers are mandated to acquire
document-informed consent.
document-informed consent.
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Well, as a reporter, if I hang
a microphone on someone,
a microphone on someone,
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that is consent.
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And when it comes to creating the story,
I'll fact-check as a reporter,
I'll fact-check as a reporter,
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but I don't invite company
to create that story,
to create that story,
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whereas social scientists, researchers,
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and particularly
participatory researchers,
participatory researchers,
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will often work on constructing
the narrative with the community.
the narrative with the community.
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And when it comes
to paying for information,
to paying for information,
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"checkbook journalism"
is roundly discouraged,
is roundly discouraged,
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in part, because of the bias it introduces
in the kind of information you get.
in the kind of information you get.
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But social scientists understand
that people's time is valuable
that people's time is valuable
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so they pay them for that time.
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So while journalists are well-placed
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to convey the beauty
of the scientific process --
of the scientific process --
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and I would add, the NGO process --
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what about the warts?
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What happens if a research project
is not particularly well-designed,
is not particularly well-designed,
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or an NGO project
doesn't fulfill its goals?
doesn't fulfill its goals?
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Or the other kind of warts,
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you know, what happens after dark
when the drinks happen.
when the drinks happen.
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Research environments
and reporting trips and NGO projects
and reporting trips and NGO projects
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are very intimate environments;
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you make good friends
while you're doing good work.
while you're doing good work.
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But there's a little bit
of Johnnie Walker journalism after dark,
of Johnnie Walker journalism after dark,
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and what happens to that line
between embedded
between embedded
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and in-bedded?
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Or what do you do with the odd
and odious behavior?
and odious behavior?
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The point is that you'll want
to negotiate in advance
to negotiate in advance
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what is on the record
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and off the record.
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I'm going to turn now to some NGO imagery
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which will be familiar
to some of you in this audience.
to some of you in this audience.
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(Video) Narrator: For about 70 cents,
you can buy a can of soda,
you can buy a can of soda,
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regular or diet.
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In Ethiopia, for just 70 cents a day,
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you can feed a child like Jamal
nourishing meals.
nourishing meals.
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For about 70 cents,
you can also buy a cup of coffee.
you can also buy a cup of coffee.
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In Guatemala, for 70 cents a day,
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you can help a child like Vilma get
the clothes she needs to attend school.
the clothes she needs to attend school.
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Leslie Dodson: Now, there's
some very common imagery
some very common imagery
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that's been around for 40 years.
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That's part of Sally Struthers's
famine campaign.
famine campaign.
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Some of it is very familiar;
it's the Madonna and child.
it's the Madonna and child.
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Women and children are very effective
in terms of NGO campaigns.
in terms of NGO campaigns.
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We've been looking at this imagery
for a long time,
for a long time,
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for hundreds and hundreds of years;
the Madonna and child.
the Madonna and child.
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Here is [Duccio],
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and here is Michelangelo.
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My concern is: Are we
one-noting the genders
one-noting the genders
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in our narratives of poverty
in developing communities?
in developing communities?
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Do we have women as victims,
and are men only the perpetrators?
and are men only the perpetrators?
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Are they the guys with the AK-47s
or the boy soldiers?
or the boy soldiers?
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Because that doesn't leave
room for stories
room for stories
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like the man who's selling ice cream
at the refuge camp in Southern Sudan,
at the refuge camp in Southern Sudan,
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where we did a project,
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or the stories of the men who are working
on the bridge over the Blue Nile.
on the bridge over the Blue Nile.
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So I wonder:
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Are these stories inconvenient
to our narratives?
to our narratives?
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And what about this narrative?
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This is a for-profit game,
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and its aim is to make development fun.
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One question is: Did they
inadvertently make fun of?
inadvertently make fun of?
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Another set of questions is:
What are the rights of these children?
What are the rights of these children?
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What rights of publicity
or privacy do they have?
or privacy do they have?
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Did they get paid?
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Should they get paid?
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Should they share in the profit?
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This is a for-profit game.
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Did they sign talent waivers?
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I have to use these
when I'm working with NGOs
when I'm working with NGOs
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and documentary filmmakers
here in the States.
here in the States.
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In the States, we take our right
to privacy and publicity
to privacy and publicity
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very seriously.
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So what is it about getting
on a long-haul flight
on a long-haul flight
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that makes these rights vaporize?
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I don't want to just pick on our friends
in the gaming arts;
in the gaming arts;
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I'll turn to the graphic arts,
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where we often see these monolithic,
homogeneous stories
homogeneous stories
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about the great country of Africa.
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But Africa is not a country,
it's a continent.
it's a continent.
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It's 54 countries and thousands
and thousands of languages.
and thousands of languages.
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So my question is:
Is this imagery productive,
Is this imagery productive,
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or is it reductive?
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I know that it's popular.
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USAID just launched
their campaign "Forward" --
their campaign "Forward" --
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FWD: Famine, War and Drought.
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And by looking at it, you would think
that was happening all the time,
that was happening all the time,
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all over Africa.
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But this is about what's happening
in the Horn of Africa.
in the Horn of Africa.
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And I'm still trying to make sense
of Africa in a piece of Wonder Bread.
of Africa in a piece of Wonder Bread.
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I'm wondering about that.
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Germaine Greer has wondered
about the same things and she says,
about the same things and she says,
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"At breakfast and at dinner,
we can sharpen our own appetites
we can sharpen our own appetites
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with a plentiful dose
of the pornography of war, genocide,
of the pornography of war, genocide,
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destitution and disease."
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She's right. We have
sharpened our appetites.
sharpened our appetites.
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But we can also sharpen our insights.
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It is not always war,
insurrection and disease.
insurrection and disease.
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This is a picture out of South Sudan,
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just a couple of months
before the new country was born.
before the new country was born.
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I will continue to work as a researcher
and a reporter in developing countries,
and a reporter in developing countries,
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but I do it with an altered
ethic of seeing.
ethic of seeing.
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I ask myself whether
my pictures are pandering,
my pictures are pandering,
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whether they contribute to stereotypes,
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whether the images match the message,
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am I complacent or am I complicit?
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Thank you.
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(Applause)
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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Leslie Dodson - ReporterLeslie Dodson’s work has taken her from Latin America to Indonesia covering international finance, economics, and politics.
Why you should listen
Leslie Dodson has reported throughout the world for Reuters, NBC and CNN, among others. She has worked extensively in South America covering politics, economics, and international finance organizations. She has also covered Asian finance and politics for NHK Japan, and the Sandinista and Contra conflicts.
Leslie Dodson | Speaker | TED.com