There is definitely a place to hear the writer’s voice in journalism. It may not belong in a traditional hard news story but it is an interesting way to tell a more detailed and lengthy story like the chapter ‘Death by Buffet’ from ‘Lost in Transmission’, a book by Australian journalist Jonathan Harley.
His novel ‘Lost in Transmission’ is about being a foreign correspondent for the ABC from 1998 to 2002 and during this time, he would have reported on many stories where the focus would have been on the fact not his experience. In this very chapter, he talks about trying to get information about the impending war to relay the story back to Australian. The newsworthy element of this story is not so much the currency of events, as it is now 6 years on but the experiences of an Australian journalist during that time. Therefore it is important to hear Harley’s voice throughout the piece.
Harley uses his observations to tell the story by describing his location, his companions and the environment in great detail. The actual narrative is quite simple as it follows his experiences from leaving Australia to arriving in India but it s the way that Harley paints the picture for his readers that draws you into the story and makes you want to continue reading.
His sense of humour and his personality which infused in his writing gives the story more depth than a straight forward recollection of events. Historically the book is also interesting as Harley was right in the middle of some very interesting stories during his time in South East Asia.
