life as a foreign correspondent
Former Guardian Foreign Editor Harriet Sherwood writes about her new life as a foreign correspondent three months into the job. Previously, she wrote about her thoughts before heading overseas,
a correspondent’s role is surely to go beyond that, to dig out the stories that aren’t immediate “news”, to provide context and analysis, to allow those whose voices are routinely drowned out by the big “players” to be heard…
Providing fast, accurate and regularly updated reports on a breaking news story is an important part of the job. But there are occasions when it feels as if I spend too much time chained to my laptop and phone, and not enough out there pursuing original and distinctive reporting. Finding the right balance is not easy – and it can’t be judged on a daily basis but only over a period of time..
So, four months in, here are some of the things I have learned. The job is exhilarating, challenging, terrifying – and sometimes lonely and very occasionally boring. It’s easy to become anxious, bordering on paranoid, about whether you are producing the “right” material and whether anyone is reading it. You quickly realise your limits of knowledge and understanding about a very complex situation, and you feel you will never “catch up” with more experienced colleagues. Some things are easier than anticipated; some – unexpected – things are more difficult. The job is with you 24 hours a day; switching off requires determined effort (and more anxiety in case you miss something). I miss my family, friends and foreign desk team much more than I expected. And it’s harder to make new friends as you get older. link
