How to report on modern slavery – National Press Foundation

Modern slavery is a huge and underreported story, journalism trainer Kavita Chandran told NPF journalists on international trade.

“How much profit does human trade generate for businesses every year? … $150 billion,” Chandran said, much of which comes from the Asia-Pacific region.

She said there are “push and pull factors” that lead people into exploitative situations, and that it is important for journalists to understand these factors when covering human rights violations. man in the global commercial supply chain.

“There is a gap between understanding life where the product is purchased and once it arrives at its destination. So it’s important for people to know more about where what you wear comes from,” Chandran said.

“When you talk about corporate supply chains, labor exploitation and writing from your country, you need to provide context on the 'why' in your country: what is happening? What is the context? Why are people poor? Why do people have to leave? Chandran told reporters in more than a dozen Asian countries.

She added that more stories about slavery and human trafficking should incorporate data and suggested using Walk Free’s Global Slavery Index as a resource to track the use of raw materials and its links to forced labor. It shows the materials most often linked to slavery and the countries that buy them.

Exploitation versus trafficking versus slavery

Exploitation occurs when people are not given the opportunity to leave. This can happen when passports are confiscated, preventing them from leaving the country. But there is a “lack of awareness” about the illegality of this practice, she said.

Chandran mentioned that the Hinduja family, the richest family in the United Kingdom, was recently found guilty of exploiting servants, including confiscating their passports.

But it’s crucial that journalists use the right terminology. People often use words like “human trafficking” and “slavery” interchangeably when referring to different things.

Human trafficking is defined as the movement of people to a place or position where they become slaves. The definition of slavery, according to the International Labour Organization, is “all work or service which is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which the person has not offered himself or herself voluntarily.”

Tracking the supply chain is difficult. Here are questions to help guide your investigations:

“What are the sourced products? What raw material in your country is used to make something that ends up in a retail store somewhere and is a big deal? Once you determine what the raw material is, you need to dig deeper. …Who provides the labor for extracting the raw material and assembling the product? Who finances the manufacturing of the product? These are all story ideas… who benefits at each stage of the product cycle? Who are the intermediate and final consumers of the product?

Chandran said these stories are not written because of their difficulty, especially since they require cross-border reporting. She suggests that if journalists can find out where raw materials are collected or where people are used to assemble products, “you can at least start connecting the dots.”

Using solutions journalism in trade and human rights stories

Chandran said news fatigue is a major problem for journalists writing about long-standing issues, like climate change or human trafficking.

“Believe it or not, people don’t want to read your news anymore. There’s so much bad news in this world… but how do you tell them there’s actually a solution?” Chandran says.

Chandran recommends using solutions journalism methods, such as presenting your story through the lens of a person, group or situation that is actively and successfully working to solve that problem.

“No propaganda. I'm not advertising to people, but I'm just saying that there are people out there trying to fix something. Let's focus and hold them accountable for the work they're supposed to do. This is solutions journalism,” Chandran said.

Access the full transcript here.

*This scholarship is part of an ongoing journalism training and business coverage awards program sponsored by the Hinrich Foundation. The National Press Foundation is solely responsible for the content. All programs are recorded and resources and transcripts of this and previous scholarships are published.