Three students attentively listen to Garland discussing press hostility. 

SPJ UW hosted Seattle Times crime reporter Sara Jean Green and freelance photojournalist Alex Garland Monday to discuss press hostility with students as media conditions around the world grow increasingly tense.

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While Green said she didn’t think she’d ever been truly afraid while reporting, Garland detailed his experience covering May Day protests over the years in Seattle and reporting from the Standing Rock Indian Reservation.

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At his first May Day protest in 2012, Garland was arrested and charged with felony assault of a police officer. The charges were dropped after video showed that this did not occur. He was also struck by a blast ball that left a scar is back.

Green sits at a round table discussion, sharing her personal experiences with press hostility. 

“When I got arrested, it lit a fire under my ass,” Garland said, adding that he didn’t want to be silenced.

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Garland now wears a ballistic vest under his clothes on occasions that could escalate to violence and carries a trauma kit in his backpack, which includes items that help with burns from pepper spray, a frequently used weapon of law enforcement.

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Green detailed her experience sitting in a courtroom as gang members tried to intimidate her. She said that she just stares right back and that they almost always blink first.

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In hostile or traumatic situations, journalists often find it hard to get people to talk to them. Both Green and Garland stressed that rejection is part of the job as a reporter, but they gave some tips on how to get the best information from people under these circumstances.

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Green said that reporters always need to clarify information with sources if they’re not sure about something. Garland said that he usually has a few questions that he asks each person he encounters, including “Why are you here?” and “Tell me what happened?”

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Despite growing hostility toward the media, which includes remarks calling reporters “the enemy of the people” and murders of journalists like Jamal Khashoggi, both panelists said they still love their jobs. Green added there will always be a need for journalists everywhere.

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“The written word is incredibly powerful,” she said.