INDIA REPORTING CLASS J 234 Spring 2018 INSTRUCTOR: GEETA ANAND OFFICE: Room 134,UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism (Lydia Chavez’s office) EMAIL: [email protected] CELL PHONE: 510-292-9412 CLASS HOURS: Wednesdays, 6 p.m. - 9 p.m. OFFICE HOURS: Wednesdays 10 a.m.-1 p.m. and 4 p.m. – 5 p.m., Brewed Awakenings on Euclid Ave CLASS DESCRIPTION: This class will prepare students to identify, report and write a fresh, interesting and important story on India. To do that, the class will help students absorb lots of information on Indian history and current affairs so they can identify a resonant story. Also, the class will help students improve their skills as journalists so they can find the most compelling way of reporting their stories and telling them. We will absorb the most information possible about India by reading some of the best books and newspaper articles about the country, watching a few compelling films, daily reading of the national and international media and classroom discussions via Skype with journalists who have lived and worked there about how they identified, reported and wrote their best stories. REQUIREMENTS: 1. Attend class each week and be prepared with the readings and assignments 2. Spend 20 minutes a day skimming Indian newspapers and international media about India. My suggestions: read The Indian Express, The Hindu, The New York Times, Reuters India. But you may choose other publications. I cannot emphasize enough how vital it is to be abreast on the news to identify good story ideas. The reading gives you the context and it gives you the ideas. 3. Take turns delivering one 5-minute oral report on the India news for the week based on daily reading of local and international media 4. Take turns interviewing the speaker for the week and writing a one- page profile of the person and taking the lead in interviewing that person. 5. Develop one story proposal that is fresh, saleable, doable and approved by me prior to our trip to India. Warning: students cannot travel to India unless they have found a story idea that is approved by me. 6. Prior to the trip to India, submit a two-page memo detailing the research material that forms the underpinning for the story. 1 7. Prior to the trip to India, file a two-page memo identifying the sources for the story and summarizing your contacts with the people who will be interviewed in India and your plan for reporting the story there. 8. Submit a story to me at the end of the semester that is based on research and reporting in India. GRADING 50% of the grade is based on the final story submitted at the end of class 25%of the grade is based on the memos of preparation for the story 25% of the grade is based on classroom attendance and participation PLEASE NOTE 1. Enrolling in this class is not a guarantee that you will travel to India. To go, you must develop a story idea that is approved by me. Students who don’t travel to India can report and write a story on the South Asian community in the San Fransisco area. If students encounter visa problems, we will together devise alternative plans. 2. We are all journalists who work in a world that changes continuously. For that reason, this syllabus will also change during the course of the semester. Speakers will change, depending on their schedules and on the interest you show in the various topics I introduce in the second class through reading the top newspaper articles of recent years. COURSE MATERIAL: BOOKS: Inspite of the Gods by Edward Luce The Modi Effect by Lance Price Beyond the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo Curfewed Night: A Memoir of War in Kashmir by Basharat Peer OPTIONAL READINGS: The Idea of India by Sunil Khilnani India After Gandhi: The History of the World’s Largest Democracy by Ramachandra Guha FILMS: Ship of Theseus, an Indian feature film, explores the meaning of identity, justice, beauty and death through three interweaving stories. It was critically acclaimed at the Toronto Film Festival. Lion, a biographical drama film based on the book A Long Way Home about an Australian man’s true story of his journey home to India to find his family, from whom he was separated 25 years earlier as a young child who got lost at a train station. The film got six Oscar nominations. Poorna, a film written, directed and acted in by Rahul Bose, about a 13-year Indian girl from tribal community ascending Mt. Everest, speaks to the challenges of overcoming caste. The Good Road, a film by Gyan Correa about child sexual exploitation that was India’s nomination for the Oscar best foreign film award 2 https://india.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/01/31/a-conversation-with-filmmaker- gyan-correa/ BBC Documentary on Delhi Rape http://watchdocumentaries.com/indias- daughter/ and Ted Talk by the film director Leslee Udwin https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2lrzgVZzas NEWSPAPER STORIES Linked below in the weekly reading lists DAILY READING OF INDIAN MEDIA AND INTERNATIONAL MEDIA ON INDIA: Note: Without this, you won’t have the context or access to ideas to identify the best stories on India My suggestions: The Indian Express indianexpress.com The Hindu thehindu.com The New York Times nytimes.com Reuters India https://in.reuters.com/ BUT you are free to choose any alternative you prefer CLASS 1 JANUARY 17 Introduction Introductions, discussion of class syllabus and assignments, travel logistics, expectations, discussion with students on why they joined this class and where else in the world they’ve been Showing short film Baphlimali 143 on tribal protest of a proposed mine Note: topics students are interested in may come in later weeks of this course, and students can meet with me outside of class if they choose stories related to topics discussed later in the semester Also Note: Students working in media other than print, let me know right away because I want to connect you with local journalists to guide you as we prepare to travel to India Final Note: Don’t be frightened by the large number of news articles on the reading list for next week. I’m giving you lots of material to read in the first few classes to help you make your story choice. The readings will ease considerably thereafter to allow time for your own research and reporting and writing. Preparation for next class, January 24: 20 minutes daily scanning of Indian and international media on India Selected student prepares a summary of the week’s news on India Selected student prepares a bio of next week’s speaker, Jeffrey Gettleman, South Asia bureau chief of The New York Times, to share January 23, the day before the next class and to deliver orally for 2 minutes at the next class, and to lead the interview of Gettleman at the next class Readings: Note: All students scan these newspaper articles on India linked below that are aimed at giving you an overview of some of the most compelling topics and stories 3 of recent years to help you make your story choices. I know the number of articles is large, but read as many as you can before the next class. We’ll return to these stories in depth in later weeks 1. Ellen Barry’s NYT series on Indian women’s struggle to work https://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/31/world/asia/indian-women-labor- work-force.html https://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/25/world/asia/bangalore-india-women- factories.html 2. Violence against women WSJ stories on the Delhi gang rape of 2012 that led to widespread protests, soul searching and new laws https://blogs.wsj.com/indiarealtime/2013/03/11/delhi-rape-the-complete- wsj-coverage/ https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424127887324669104578209043882 363124 https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424127887323320404578211693035 855564 https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424127887323829504578271810720 960682 https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424127887324616604578302620513 689386 3. Reporting on healthcare and disease Geeta Anand’s stories on drug resistant tuberculosis in the WSJ https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702303444204577460734274201756 https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424127887324894104578115232206834770 https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10000872396390444273704577633431646496346 Geeta Anand’s story on diabetes in the NYT https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/26/health/india-diabetes-junk-food.html Gardiner Harris on the spread of drug resistant bacteria for NYT https://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/04/world/asia/superbugs-kill-indias- babies-and-pose-an-overseas-threat.html 4. Reporting on corruption and lawlessness in India Geeta Anand’s Indiabulls company harassing a stock market analyst for the WSJ https://www.wsj.com/articles/a-negative-stock-report-about-indiabulls-led-to- an-analysts-arrest-and-a-2-000-mile-odyssey-1442291340 Geeta Anand for the WSJ on fake shootouts by the police https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052970204443404577054351991 039764 Geeta Anand for the WSJ on the enrichment of the Gandhi son-in-law https://www.wsj.com/articles/behind-a-real-estate-empire-ties-to-indias- gandhi-dynasty-1397787248 Ellen Barry’s NYT story on the cover-up of a murder 4 https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/19/world/asia/murder-small-town- india.html 5. India’s struggle to overcome profound and deeply entrenched inequality Geeta Anand’s on the struggle to overcome inequality for the WSJ https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748704083904576337373758 647478 6. Caste System Geeta Anand’s on the struggle to overcome the caste system for the WSJ https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052970204903804577080700006 684514 7.