by: julia park
the person behind the byline
Looking for my actual journalism portfolio? Visit my other website.
INTERVIEWING
Let sources lead the way.
Once I have the seed of an idea or something I'm curious about, the next step is to start talking to people. With a few names, I can start making phone calls and sending emails to people who might know more. Someone once told me that people are like icebergs — there's so much beneath the surface. Every interview is a journey into the unknown.
Through studying literature, oral histories and cultural difference, I've learned that building genuine relationships and spending time with people are key to having a meaningful interview.
Case Study: The Executive Order 9066 Story
Headline: "Remembering Executive Order 9066 Through the Generations"
Publication: South Seattle Emerald
Date Published: Feb. 28, 2024
Story Type: Human-Interest Feature
Words: 2409
Listen and learn. I had recently started freelancing for the South Seattle Emerald, a local online-only newspaper focused on reporting on issues relevant to residents of south Seattle, especially communities of color. My news editor asked if I'd be able to do a story commemorating the Day of Remembrance on Feb. 19, which marks the day that FDR signed the executive order authorizing the forced removal of Japanese Americans across the country into
incarceration camps. After attending a DOR event hosted by the UW Nikkei Student Union, I started wondering if there might be a unique story to tell about how the camps impacted different generations of Japanese Americans, from the oldest living survivors to their children now my age. One survivor I interviewed encouraged me to imagine my own grandparents being forced to leave their homes and everything they had because of the detention order. For the first time, I caught a glimpse of what it might have been like to come to America, just like my grandparents did, and lose everything in the span of a few weeks. Unlike fact-finding interviews or chats with trained PR people, these conversations were measured, slow, and tenuous. Being patient and learning to listen intently is a skill I've been working on.
The Lakeshore, a retirement community in South Seattle, is the home of several survivors of the WWII Japanese American incarceration camps. (Photo: Julia Park)
PARK FAMILY HISTORY PROJECT
Winter 2022 | ENGL 302 Ad Hoc Honors Project
I interviewed my grandmother and created a half-translation, half-retelling of her immigration story escaping from North Korea as a child and then coming to the U.S. as an adult. I was nervous about asking her for an interview, even though we are very close, because I didn't want to reawaken painful memories. But I did, and the story that she told me about her life was remarkably cohesive and vivid, perfect for a retelling in narrative form. Make the ask, even if it's hard.
SCARS, SILENCE, AND SPECULATIONS: THE COMMUNICATION OF PAIN IN NARRATIVES OF ENSLAVED WOMEN
Winter 2023 | ENGL 327 Ad Hoc Honors Paper
I designed my own research project comparing autobiographical accounts of African American enslaved women in the U.S. to Korean “comfort women” forced into sexual slavery by the Japanese military in WWII. Interview transcripts and memoirs were my raw materials. The takeaway: women who experienced slavery turned to various rhetorical strategies to communicate pain that was often inexpressible.
The project earned a UW Libraries Undergraduate Research Award in 2023. Let sources lead the way.
STUDY ABROAD IN SEOUL
Fall 2022 | Exchange Program at Yonsei University
From Aug.–Dec. 2023, I lived, studied and traveled in South Korea. Spending most of my time in Sinchon, the neighborhood where Yonsei University is located, I also visited Jeju Island and the city of Busan (the latter is where I took the video at the top of this page). While I came to be immersed in the culture and language, I ended up building some treasured friendships with people from all across the world. The world is your oyster – and people will always surprise you.