I Don't Always Have the Answers
Empathy and Responsibility in Journalism | An Interview with Brendan Hoffman by Kimberly J. Soenen April 23, 2023
(Photojournalist Brendan Hoffman and his son, Luka. Photo by Oksana Parafeniuk.)
Soenen: Let’s get right to it. Since 2013, Ukraine. Why?
Hoffman: It was a bit of happenstance that took me to Ukraine at first.
I moved overseas from Washington, D.C. to Moscow in the summer of 2013, so I was sort of nearby when the Maidan protests began just a few months later. I arrived to cover that story fairly early, in the beginning of December. The atmosphere during what came to be called the “Revolution of Dignity” was inspiring and unique, so when Russia began stirring up trouble in eastern Ukraine in spring 2014, I felt both curiosity and a responsibility to continue my work in Ukraine. I don't like to spread myself too thinly so I have been based here ever since. Life in Kyiv was much more suitable than Moscow anyway.
Soenen: You’ve covered conflict and warfare extensively, what’s different about the Russian invasion and genocide in Ukraine? Why is this one different?
Hoffman: I think it's important as a journalist to embrace complexity and not oversimplify stories that often have multiple protagonists or villains. Almost all stories are more gray than black and white, and it's sort of the definition of empathy to be able to see and understand the motivations and actions of people on different sides of a story.
Empathy, of course, is an incredibly important quality for a journalist. What's different about the Russian invasion is the straightforward wrongness of it. This story isn't complicated, and one simply can't make a reasonable argument that both sides share blame. People try, obviously, pinning blame on Ukraine for courting NATO or NATO for taking advantage of Ukraine, but it's an absurd position.
Soenen: We’ve lost colleagues and friends in Libya, Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, Saudi Arabia…Ukraine. What are the biggest challenges for you in the context of staying healthy in the field—both mentally and physically? Perpetual Warfare churns on as a global economy, but is most frequently framed as a moral battle.
Hoffman: The mental part of the job is by far the hardest part. The days are long and the stories are often depressing, but that's normal.
Ironically, as I have become more experienced, I also feel more stress over my responsibilities as a journalist. I know how to take a picture, but where should I aim my lens? Am I giving our readers good and important information that will challenge and enlighten them? Am I reinforcing stereotypes? Am I wasting the time of the people I photograph, or, how can I make sure it's worth their while? Am I contributing to fatigue and apathy by serving up pictures of death and destruction or are these a necessary part of the historical record? Are my pictures breaking ground visually and am I pushing myself to advance my own craft? How can I do that and still do my job consistently?
Those are all questions that consume me and can make it hard to keep going because I don't always know the answers.
“I think it's important as a journalist to embrace complexity and not oversimplify stories that often have multiple protagonists or villains. Almost all stories are more gray than black and white, and it's sort of the definition of empathy to be able to see and understand the motivations and actions of people on different sides of a story.”
“Empathy, of course, is an incredibly important quality for a journalist. What's different about the Russian invasion is the straightforward wrongness of it. This story isn't complicated, and one simply can't make a reasonable argument that both sides share blame. People try, obviously, pinning blame on Ukraine for courting NATO or NATO for taking advantage of Ukraine, but it's an absurd position.”
— Brendan Hoffman
Soenen: For readers who are not familiar with the demands of an experienced journalist, can you share what a day looks like for you when you are immersed in the the war environment? Almonds, honey and dehydrated coffee pouches used to be a staple for journalists. Where do you eat, what do you carry, where do you recharge your equipment, and where do you sleep?
Hoffman: In the past year I've been working mainly in and around Kyiv, so the logistics aren't actually that hard. I get to sleep in my own apartment, which feels like a bigger luxury than any hotel suite.
The hardest was in the autumn when blackouts were fairly extensive…I couldn't cook at home even if I had time and it was a gamble whether restaurants would be operating. Still, we always had power for at least a few hours overnight so recharging batteries was pretty simple. The electricity situation since January has been much more stable and Kyiv is basically back to normal. They've just extended the curfew to midnight, so even after a long day I can find someplace to eat if I don't have any food at home.
In terms of what I carry, I like to travel light but when possible I take water, snacks, a power bank, my laptop to send images quickly if needed, and body armor just in case.
Soenen: We have seen the documentation of mass murder, child trafficking, rape as a weapon of war, and torture of both citizens and soldiers in Ukraine. What have you witnessed in Ukraine that is most indelible or unshakable?
Hoffman: For me, the strongest impression has come from the ways that so many ordinary people, acutely aware that they are as much a target as any soldiers, pitch in and do their own small part to support the war effort or just support each other, beyond the obvious example of signing up to fight.
In the early days, it was mostly about making Molotov cocktails or cooking and delivering food for the territorial defense forces. Now I see it when all the neighbors come out to clean up after a missile strike, or you meet some random person who has figured out how to cheaply import pickup trucks from the United States to provide to the military. Or, simply, when people remain positive and carry on with as much of their normal lives as possible.
Resilience aside, the past year has been traumatic for a huge number of Ukrainians and that's something the country will deal with for generations.
Soenen: We are saturated by low quality photos that lack context, story or consideration in modern day. Does one exceptional stand-out photo or photo essay by a skilled photojournalist still have the power to change public opinion, legislation and policy?
Hoffman: I honestly think it's much harder now than it was, for precisely the reason you stated.
Occasionally, one picture still breaks through the noise, but it's not predictable to me which ones have this power. Suffice it to say, it's not usually because of their aesthetic qualities, but more likely the way in which the subject intersects with some larger narrative. I notice it myself, too, scrolling through Instagram without really being captivated by much of what I see. Are my eyes just tired, or are we sharing too many mediocre pictures due to some imperative that we must produce and post more and more content? It's probably a combination of both.
Soenen: Do you have a family? How do you navigate the stressors of your job with your personal life?
Hoffman: This has been the biggest joy and biggest complication of the war for me personally. My son was born last June, just a few months after the war began. We didn't take any chances and moved to Poland for the birth.
Since then we've been bouncing around a lot, trying to figure out how to be at home in Ukraine but also keep him safe but also keep working but also spend time with him...there are no perfect answers, only compromises.
There was a period in the fall when my family was in Ukraine and that was stressful, too, since it coincided with regular missile barrages on Kyiv and elsewhere, so we couldn't ignore the air raid sirens and had to shelter with him in the nearby metro station fairly often.
I have been lucky working for The New York Times in that they've been pretty flexible and understanding, giving me consistent work and consistent time off. I'm sure it's a pain for the editors though, and it is extremely difficult for me when I go weeks on end without seeing my son or my wife. She is Ukrainian and also a photographer; because she's breastfeeding it's been almost impossible for her to work despite the incredible importance for her personally and professionally. That's been yet another layer of stress.
Soenen: You and I both know journalists who have been killed since 2011 by first name—Tim, Jim, Chris, and many European / Ukrainian journalists covering this war.
In the spring of 2022, the exceptional veteran photojournalist Timothy Fadek wrote a strong article published by Blind magazine about the dangers of inexperience in war photojournalism after videographer Brent Renaud was killed in Ukraine. In the article, Fadek wisely warns younger journalists, who were arriving to cover the conflict in Ukraine, sometimes without preparation or experience.
What advice would you give to young photojournalists and videographers covering modern day warfare now?
Hoffman: This is a bit of a Catch-22 for sure.
Obviously, everyone should go through a hostile environment training course beforehand. Otherwise, a war zone is not the place to learn photography as such. Get some experience elsewhere first, so that you know how to make a decent frame and generally comport yourself among colleagues. Get experience working abroad so you know how to work with fixers/drivers and how to deal with people when you don't speak the language.
Maybe covering a natural disaster would be helpful in terms of learning to work in a difficult environment without there being such immediate danger to you or the team you're working with. If you've done all that, hopefully you have gotten to know some other journalists that have conflict experience that you can buddy up with.
Soenen: How do you stay healthy physically and mentally?
Hoffman: Staying physically healthy is the easier of the two.
When my schedule allows, I go to a gym near my apartment four or five days a week. I also like to cook, so overall I eat fairly healthy food and get enough exercise. The best medicine for my mind is being out in nature. I love hiking, camping, snowboarding, and foraging for wild mushrooms. The Carpathian mountains of western Ukraine is my favorite place to do those things.
Soenen: How are you doing now and what is your prediction for this war?
Hoffman: Right now, I'm sitting in a rented apartment in a beach town south of Barcelona, so things are fine. My family moved out of Ukraine over the winter because of concerns about safety and having reliable heat and power due to Russia's targeted attacks on electrical infrastructure, but the effort basically failed.
Together with the arrival of spring, it's not as big an issue anymore, though there are still missiles and drones aimed at Kyiv sometimes. We'll return to Kyiv next week and I'll start my next assignment. It's exciting to go home all together after spending most of the past 13 months bouncing around Poland, Spain, France, the United States, and Ukraine, but until the war is over we won't rest easily.
I honestly don't know how this war ends. It has to be Putin's decision to call off his military and I think he's willing to sacrifice almost anything to avoid a retreat with his tail between his legs.
It will certainly grind on for at least another year, but it can easily last five or ten more years in some form or another.
Soenen: Thank you Brendan. Thank you for the ongoing work. Stay in touch.
Hoffman: Thank you.
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