Trauma Aware Training for Journalists and Comms
Are you a trauma-aware professional? This three-part interactive training course, developed and delivered by former BBC journalist Jo Healey, is a comprehensive guide to working with traumatised people. Putting grieving families, victims and survivors at its heart, Healey’s mantra ‘Do your job, do it well, do no harm’ ensures the wellbeing of reporters is also at the heart of the training.
NUJ Training Wales delivered an early version of this course last year, and we are delighted to be among the first training providers to offer the expanded and newly CPD-accredited course. On completion, delegates receive a CPD Certificate of completion as a trauma aware professional. The course is delivered in single-session modules on three consecutive Wednesday mornings.
WHO IS IT FOR?
Do you feel confident reporting on victims, survivors, people who are distressed, grieving or going through a tough emotional time? How might sensitivity and respect look to your interviewees? Do you feel equipped to handle them and the potential emotional impact on your wellbeing?
- All content creators of all levels of experience working on all platforms: journalists, producers, researchers, editors, presenters, content producers, communications professionals, PRs, social media content producers
- Camera operators, directors and film makers of all levels of experience
- People working in news, features, factual programming who deal with emotionally vulnerable interviewees
- Communicators, particularly those working in eg the third sector with emotionally vulnerable interviewees
WHAT WILL YOU LEARN?
We can often be working with victims, survivors and contributors who are hurting. When done well, these stories can be both impactful and rewarding. Each live online session will allow you to:
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- Become more trauma aware
- Be empowered with skills you’ll know to be good practice
- Learn appropriate techniques for approaching people, building relationships, interviewing them, filming with them, writing about them and following up their sensitive stories.
- Listen to what your interviewees may need from you via audio clips with people who spoke to journalists at tough times in their lives. They share what helped and what harmed.
- Share your experience, expertise and observations
- Look after yourself when being exposed to difficult emotional stories
COURSE OUTLINES:
Each session is interactive and punctuated with audio clips of traumatically bereaved parents, children, eye- witnesses and abuse survivors. They all shared their stories with journalists and offer constructive advice and powerful insight. It is also informed by trauma expert and clinician Professor Stephen Regel. Each session allows time for chat box interactions, discussion and Q&A.
TRAUMA REPORTING/MODULE 1 (TR1)
- The six key principles of trauma reporting and how to apply them
- What is trauma/a potentially traumatic event?
- Getting it right from the start. Establishing professional relationships with contributors
- Awareness around traumatic bereavement, including Covid related deaths
- Sensitive interviewing, face to face and remotely. What to ask, what not to ask. How to handle your contributors throughout the process and why it’s important
- Self- care: what to look out for, what to do about it, how to protect yourself, building resilience
TRAUMA REPORTING/MODULE 2 (TR2)
- Approaching and making contact with people at difficult times
- Why we approach and why people choose to speak to us
- Following up people’s sensitive stories: Including re-visiting at anniversaries, court cases, inquests, inquiries, police appeals, memorials etc
- Trauma awareness: potential responses of people at the scene, in the immediate aftermath and further down the line. Reporting PTSD and recovery
- Julian Worriker on ‘live’ sensitive interviewing
- Self-care: vicarious trauma, signs to look out for, risk factors and what to do about it
- Making mistakes. Plus Louis Theroux on facing dilemmas
- Jeremy Bowen, Middle East Editor on looking after yourself and your contributors
- And breathe……. ‘broadcasters breathing’ exercise.
TRAUMA REPORTING/MODULE 3 (TR3)
- Trauma awareness and practical tips when working with specific groups of people:
- Working with survivors of sexual violence and abuse
- Anonymous filming
- Establishing healthy professional boundaries
- Writing and framing sensitive stories including domestic abuse, suicide, child sexual abuse
- Tips around reporting on people’s mental health
- Working with children
- Covering traumatic bereavement
- Filming with people. Key considerations
- Self-care: managing anxiety and stress, what you can and can’t control
You must attend all three live modules in order to gain the CPD qualification.
If you think your colleagues or workplace would benefit from this training, please contact us to discuss how we can work with your employer to deliver it.
ABOUT THE TRAINER
Jo Healey is the author of Trauma Reporting, A Journalist’s Guide to Covering Sensitive Stories. She is a senior BBC News Journalist who developed and introduced Trauma Reporting training for the BBC. She has trained hundreds of journalists and media staff from all over the world. She is the CEO of Trauma Work