‘Show Up’: In-Person Reporting Gets Results

Paul Miller Washington Reporting Alumni Share Tips: Journalists offer advice on building sources on Capitol Hill and in new beats.
by Samantha Hooley, National Press Foundation
Accelerated news cycles, shrinking newsrooms and pandemic-inspired Zoom conferences have increasingly tied journalists to their desks, effectively altering news gathering that thrived on human interaction.
While the digitally driven process has expedited speed to market, veteran Washington reporters told the National Press Foundation’s Paul Miller Washington Reporting Fellowship class that there is no substitute for personal engagement.
“One thing that sounds old school, but I don’t think a lot of folks do it as much - it’s showing up,” said Deborah Berry, a national correspondent at USA TODAY. “These days, they’ll try to email you in a second and not even bother, right? You can’t even have their phone numbers anymore. So sometimes I still show up and knock on the door, and they look scared.”
Joined by The Washington Post’s senior congressional reporter Paul Kane and Politico’s Nicholas Wu, Berry said the initial uneasiness almost always opens the door to more trusting relationships born of a collective respect for the process.
“They remember that you were there even if you didn’t write … those kinds of little things matter … Just show up; that’s half of it,” she said.
Berry, Kane and Wu, all accomplished alumni of the NPF Paul Miller program, said many of those early lessons were acquired during the year-long fellowship designed to introduce rising Washington reporters to the institutions and people vital to their work.
“Doors were opening that I didn’t think could be opened for me. And so it was an amazing experience that really built a foundation for understanding,” Kane said.
Among their career building blocks:
Follow up with connections
“When they say, ‘Call me,’ do that. When you get the card, do that,” Berry said.
Also, never burn a bridge.
“You want to be nice to everyone because you never know where those people will end up,” Wu said.
Keeping up with contacts is important, even when your current work may not include them.
“Try to do that coffee and tea … but try to do it with folks early, not just when it’s breaking news,” Berry said. “By the time you need them, you have already kind of developed a little bit of relationship.”
Become an expert in your beat
While reporting on a new beat can be daunting, the journalists urged full immersion in the subject matter and the experts who can make sense of it all.
“One thing that helped me a lot when I first started on the Hill beat was just remembering what I knew and also what I didn’t know, since I think a lot of humility will get you a long way on a new beat,” Wu said.
Listening is key
“When you’re interviewing somebody and they’re on a roll, don’t interrupt them,” Kane said, adding that subjects can be spurred on by the simplest of follow-up questions: “Really?”
Some of the best stories also come from casual conversations while walking the halls with lawmakers or other interview subjects, Wu said.
“Going back to the January 6th committee, the most important stories we got out of them were when we’d be walking and talking with … Bennie Thompson,” Wu said, referring to the panel’s chairman, Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss.
Keep it simple
“You don’t want to repel readers or viewers with jargon,” Kane said.
And always remember your audience.
“It’s good to know folks on the Hill - and you should - but please get to know folks who are off the Hill or even down the street,” Berry said. Including people who are affected by legislation can make a good story great.
Reach out across newsrooms
“If we all pay it forward and pay it back, that builds tissue,” Kane said.
For Wu, that was a main takeaway from the fellowship.
“I think maybe one of the biggest lessons for me out of Paul Miller was just how valuable this network of people will be,” Wu said. “It is an incredible group of people, and all of the officials and people from Paul Miller will be very, very incredible helpful resources down the line too.”
Speakers:
Deborah Berry, National Correspondent, USA Today
Paul Kane, Senior Congressional Correspondent, The Washington Post
Nicholas Wu, Congressional Reporter, Politico
Summary, transcript and resources: nationalpress....
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