Plain Dealer reporters discuss coverage of Johanna series
Plain Dealer reporter Rachel Dissell and photographer Gus Chan followed the story of Johanna Orozco for six months in 2007. As the newspaper wrote in its moving and award-winning series, Dissell and Chan “began looking for answers about how a teen relationship turned tragic; they found instead the story of a survivor.”
Dissell, a Kent State journalism grad, and photojournalist Chan spoke at KSU in February 2008 about their experiences covering Johanna’s story and the resulting series titled “Johanna: Facing Forward.”
In excerpts from their talk to journalism students, Dissell and Chan discuss the difficulties they encountered trying to document what happened between Johanna, an 18-year-old high school senior who was shot in the face by her 17-year-old ex-boyfriend, Juan.
Hear how Dissell and Chan managed to remain objective and how they dealt with ethics issues of privacy and confidentiality, among others.
The original series, with additional photos and multimedia extras, is available at the Plain Dealer’s web site:
http://www.cleveland.com/johanna/
Among others, the series won a 2008 Dart Award for Excellence in Coverage of Trauma and a National Headliner Award for best online slideshow.
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