At police lines, not all journalists are created equal Email not displaying correctly?
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Officers are far more likely to stop JOCs from gaining access — and that affects what reaches the audience
Authors Jayrol San Jose, left, and Ben Camacho on May 6 in La Habra, California. (Courtesy: Rodrigo Magaña)

By Ben Camacho and Jayrol San Jose

For a lot of journalism’s history, BIPOC experiences have been told through a white lens. Even when photojournalists and writers have come from diverse backgrounds, few decisions in the newsroom have been directed by someone BIPOC.

On one of the first days of Black Lives Matter demonstrations in Los Angeles, where we live, KTLA’s headline read ([link removed]) , “Protestors block 101 Freeway, smash patrol car window in downtown L.A. during protest over George Floyd’s death.”
MPR News, a news organization based where Floyd lived, had the headline ([link removed]) “‘Unbelievable devastation’: 1 dead as Floyd protests boil over again.” Its feature photo depicted buildings and a car hollowed out by fire.


A Washington Post headline ([link removed]) read, “Night of destruction across D.C. after protesters clash with police outside White House.” The featured visual showed a silhouetted person jamming a bar into an already-destroyed car.
Being journalists of color, we saw the streets and the people on them through our own lens of shared experiences when it came to covering BLM last year. Seeing ourselves in the people we were covering or knowing their experiences firsthand brought out a powerful human element to our work: empathy. Being on the ground gave us the chance to use our own experiences to tell the stories of protesters.


While press freedom is established in the “supreme law of the land,” those who are charged with enforcing the law tend to enforce it selectively. The first night that we covered the protesting in downtown Los Angeles, police lines became impassable and often unapproachable radiuses that promised a use of force (usually by the pointing of a rubber-coated-steel-bullet gun barrel our way). While these types of interactions with police and sheriff’s departments were the norm for us, we witnessed taller, older, agency-backed, white press photographers cross the police lines with a simple nod.
Some press photographers and writers have established relationships with the police, thus making their navigating easier, but we witnessed a double standard several times when it came to younger, white journalists. Someone we met let us know they do not typically photograph protests but told us “it’s what’s trending” and said they sold their photographs on a stock photo website.


That all means that we, and other journalists who looked like us in age and/or race, were left where the police’s force was concentrated. Being physically and mentally terrorized was part of the job for us. Whenever the time came for us to gear up and get out there, we had to worry about being injured and/or arrested. We were seen as part of the crowd — not as journalists — because we weren’t allowed to cross the police line.
One of us took a safety and first-aid course by Silk Road Training as a response to our experiences. Some of the more important things we learned were how to stop bleeding, risk assessment and mitigation, understanding police and/or other types of government forces, and practicing situational awareness. While there was nothing BIPOC-specific in the course, the skills learned are useful because as JOCs we are typically the ones more susceptible to violence on the field.


We also contacted and established a connection with a pro bono lawyer from the National Lawyers Guild. Knowing our rights and asserting them, though two very different things, were essential to navigating the protests. The assertion went hand in hand with simply not giving up.
Experiencing subjective applications of the law and force, we had to learn how to read the situations and the police better. Some officers may let you cross because you say you’re part of the press, but sometimes you have to find the officer in charge of their operation and assert your rights as journalists. We had guns and batons pointed at us when trying to initiate a conversation about crossing a Los Angeles Police Department line; moments after, we saw a TV news cameraman cross with no issue. We even saw a livestreamer, with no press credentials, carrying a large U.S. flag on a pole cross with no issue.


These are ways that gatekeeping in journalism can come from law enforcement agencies. Although we are more used to gatekeeping coming from those within the journalism industry, this type of behavior goes directly against what the First Amendment attempts to establish.
Journalists given access beyond police lines get different photographs or angles of what is happening, which makes their work stand out when news organizations are looking for photos or videos to publish. This means the JOC lens won’t necessarily be applied to deciding what’s newsworthy. We were lucky and privileged enough to get through some lines, but the number of JOCs who did not get through is unknown.


We had to learn to assert our rights and find resources needed to create a safety net from the ground up. For us, that started with realizing we deserve an even playing field. We had to start talking about the obstacles we faced in the field and find ways to address them. Some of the solutions manifested as the safety and first-aid training, connecting with legal help, using the buddy system, and joining a freelance journalists union.
We need to make it clear to the police that we are there as media so that the risk of getting arrested is kept to a minimum. And we must keep a level of seriousness when interacting with them. Keep in mind, though, that sometimes being a journalist is a reason for the police to target you — they have an interest in controlling the story.
Ben Camacho is a freelance visual journalist, co-chair of the IWW Freelance Journalists Union Legal Committee and part of the West Side Storytellers (YouTube ([link removed]) , Instagram ([link removed]) ); find him on Twitter and Instagram at @bencamach0. Jayrol San Jose is a freelance documentarian and part of the West Side Storytellers; follow him on Instagram at @jayroi ([link removed]) .

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I’ve never managed people before. How do I get promoted?
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Dear Council of Truth-Tellers:
How do you know when you’re ready to move up in leadership roles? I haven’t managed people before, but there are job openings that I’m definitely qualified for other than that. How can I demonstrate I know what I’m doing or willing to learn when managing people?

Our Truth-Tellers ([link removed]) respond.

Corey: Every good and bad manager you’ve ever had has, in a way, prepared you to manage others. Take the good traits, and remember not to repeat the bad ones!
Leah: Corey, so true. As someone who just started managing, I have thoughts. I think another thing to really keep in mind is that being a manager is a totally different skill set from being great at whatever your other role is. You may be an amazing reporter/producer/editor/whatever, but that's not what managing is. So you have to ask yourself: Do I like problem solving with people all day? Am I willing to be in a zillion meetings? Will I still feel satisfied if my job is more about making my team work than about doing the tasks I'm used to?
Jan: Managing people is about more than being a good journalist. Are you willing to step out of the limelight to promote others’ success? Are you able to make difficult decisions that may not be popular? Can you lead by example while advocating for your team? Are you good at handling conflict? Problem solving? You may not see the direct connection, but your life experience has taught you transferable skills that are relevant.

Leah: Yes! Are re: Corey’s point, I feel like a lot of bad managers I’ve had were bad because they didn't actually want to do the job. So they resent a lot of those elements or put them to the side.
Jan: What is wonderful about being a manager is that you get to influence the direction of your organization. You are positioned to be an advocate and support for colleagues. It also means you are responsible for motivating and holding people accountable. If those roles interest you, pursue management. If you’d rather be landing the next scoop yourself, follow that path.
Corey: The transferable-skills piece is so important when you start to consider exactly what or who you'll be managing. Do you possess high emotional intelligence? Don’t count yourself out of the people-managing game, even if you haven’t done it! If system- and schedule-based organization is more your strong suit, you could look for opportunities that more closely align with that skill.
Jan: Corey and Leah are right. Bad managers aren’t necessarily bad people. For a variety of reasons, they don’t have the skill set or inclination to make the shift from doing journalism to leading. If you do decide to manage, look for a mentor in industry who can be your sounding board.
Leah: Mentors are super helpful. There are also lots of good seminars and trainings (s/o to Poynter!) about how to build leadership and management skills, and they’ll often pair you with a mentor or cohort. It’s a pretty demonstrable way of showing people you work with that you want to step up and are learning the skills to do it.

[Editor’s note: Here’s one Poynter training ([link removed]) to consider if you’re a journalist with big responsibilities but no direct reports. Applications for our 2022 leadership academies will open soon. Subscribe to our Weekly Training Digest ([link removed]) to stay in the know.]
Jan: Remember, no manager is perfect. You will make mistakes. Own up to them. Learn from them. And if you don’t know something, that is okay. Take the time to gather the information and then make a decision. Be transparent and your colleagues will work with you and grow as a team.
Corey: Don’t be afraid to lean on those who have been there longer — especially during a pandemic! It'd be pretty difficult to find a newsroom that hasn’t changed operations to accommodate the times. We’re all still getting used to change!
Leah: Plus one to asking for help and owning up to mistakes. Worst advice managers are given (I think) is to never accept/admit blame for anything. It’s so self-defeating, and it prevents people on your team from feeling comfortable be honest when they mess up, too. Jan and Corey, I’m curious: What’s the worst quality you two have had in a manager?
Jan: Being unable to handle conflict. A previous manager left me huge messes to clean up because they couldn’t bring themselves to address thorny personnel issues. Some time after I took over the position, they apologized. I don’t let problems simmer.
Corey: My worst manager was racist :sweat_smile:
Leah: Uh-oh! LMAO. Been there.
Jan: Oh my.
Corey: Because he was racist, I had to jump through hoops to explain why stories mattered, so I guess it boils down to him not being a good listener.
Jan: I’m sorry your boss was racist and tone-deaf.
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Coming next month, for subscribers only, the Truth-Tellers answer:
Our company just added “set a DEI goal” to our performance review. I don’t even know where to begin. How can I set a goal for myself when the company has lots of areas that need improvement? I feel a lot of pressure — as one of the few JOCs — to help the company look better to outsiders. That doesn’t necessarily help me.

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