How do journalists prepare to cover unfamiliar fields?

Question

When journalists get an assignment to interview someone in an industry they aren’t familiar with, or write on a new topic, how do they familiarise with context-specific vocabulary?

Answer 1

It really isn't possible to bone up on the vocabulary of a field in a few hours. The vocabulary of a field exists to express experiences, distinctions, and idea that are unique to that field. In other words, its vocabulary is tied to its history and community, and you can't bone up on those things in a few hours.

Two things seem to work as well as you can expect them to (this is based more on observing the results rather than the process, since my journalism career was brief). One is to find an expert in the field who is adept at explaining things in terms the public can understand. This is why networks like CNN have their stable of pet scientists that they trot out whenever they need some newsworthy scientific event explained to the public.

The other is for a journalist to devote their career to reporting on a particular field, so that they actually do have the time to bone up on the ideas and the vocabulary of the field and the background to understand and explain new developments when they arise.

In other words, you need someone, either the subject or the journalist, to have one foot on both sides of the divide. If you are not already the journalist with one foot on both sides, your best bet would be to look for an interview subject who has. Devoting you research time to finding that person, rather than trying to become an overnight expert, might be a better use of your time.

Answer 2

Having actually been put in this position for a few assignments, I can tell you how I handle it.

• First I assess how much TIME I have. That determines the level of research I will do.
• Remember that asking an expert questions before you've done any research, while possible, means that you won't have any idea what you don't know--in other words, you won't really have an idea of what questions are the correct ones to ask. Often the same questions are asked over and over--the answer to those are out there, so get them to expound on the common answers. When, for example, I had to do a piece on the history of an area I knew nothing about, I went to the library first, talked to the research desk there, took notes, and THEN I talked to the historical expert--especially about points that were rumored, conflicting, or expounding on a commonly talked-about bit of history.
• Look at the publication you are writing for. Are you writing for the laymen or the common public? If so, and you aren't an expert your perspective will be valuable.
• If the publication is a little more specialized, you will need to quickly study as much as you can. I've done so by using library resources, and by asking experts.
• One of the questions I ask experts when I don't know what I am doing is, basically, "I'm getting a grasp on this subject and I know you're the go-to person. What questions should I be asking for this kind of article?" I also ask them what sources are good via the web and if there are any other experts I should be talking with. This sort of thing works better by phone, and if you can do a series of follow ups with them. But it can be done by email. Sometimes they can even give you angle that hasn't been covered--for that I ask this question: "What don't people talk about in the industry that you really think we should?"
• For basic vocab, there's a lot of different resources you can use, but I have found that something like the "For Dummies" series is the laymen's way into specialized fields. It gives you a start/overview.
• Vet any internet source very, very much. Disinformation can be spread far and wide over the net--an incorrect wikipedia entry for instance, can end up getting copied and used throughout the internet even after the wiki's been corrected. That doesn't mean I don't use wikipedia--when I have done interviews for obscure bands, it's often the only source available--in that case I ask if it's accurate. Otherwise I use it as a launching point, and look at the primary sources provided on Wikipedia. I vet those as well--I run the sources through google and check academic credentials.