Workshops driven by the voices of survivors* bring best practices for reporting on trauma and supporting survivors of homicides, traffic fatalities, sexual violence, mass violence, and more. These can be delivered in person or remotely over Zoom.
Workshops tailored to your team’s needs
Newsroom Training
Through this multi-media, interactive workshop, journalists will explore the impact of their storytelling on trauma survivors and learn how to use trauma-informed strategies to create better stories and better outcomes for survivors and journalists alike. Participants will also learn about the risks associated with trauma exposure—including vicarious trauma, PTSD, and moral injury—as well as tips for self-care. Through trauma-informed journalism, harm that often accompanies bad-news stories can be mitigated or eliminated for all stakeholders. This workshop can range from 90 minutes to full-day sessions.
Non-Profit Training
Non-profits often rely on the experiences of their clients and members to show members of the public (including donors) the value of their work. But when those narratives involve trauma, special care must be taken. In this 90-minute workshop for non-profits, victim service providers, and other stakeholders who surround trauma survivors, participants will learn the impact on survivors of sharing their traumatic stories publicly and how to adequately support survivors through their interactions (or lack thereof) with the media. More broadly, participants will learn how to support survivors in sharing their stories on a variety of platforms, including earned media, social media, and traditional public relations campaigns.
Justice-Sector Training
Justice-sector partners, including police officers and lawyers, are often the first point of contact for trauma survivors whose stories may be shared on the public stage. This 90-minute workshop teaches participants about the impact of the media on trauma survivors, and how to adequately support survivors in their interactions (or lack thereof) with the media. Participants also learn about the impact of their own actions in the media on trauma survivors — including survivors attached to their case and survivors who experienced similar trauma.
Not interested in a workshop, but want to learn more about trauma-informed storytelling? Watch these videos from the experts. Tips can also be found here.
*While Tamara’s training is driven by the voices of survivors, she encourages organizations to also call upon speakers from the survivor community. Tamara’s perspective is one of a journalist who reported on trauma for many years, and who thought she knew everything there was to know about trauma, only to realize through her research that she had been getting things wrong in so many ways, to the detriment of survivors and to herself. She shares her experiences so journalists and other professionals may reflect on their own practices and take steps to do things right.
“. . . Multiple reporters expressed it was one of the most impactful sessions we’ve hosted. It’s clear there is a real need for reporters to talk about trauma so they can better their work and themselves. Tamara provided the perfect environment—both honest and understanding—and I look forward to working with her again.”
“After attending Pickup Communications’ workshop and seeing Tamara Cherry in action, I was blown away with how insightful, beneficial and necessary this training is for law enforcement, the media, attorneys and victims’ advocates. I highly recommend this trauma-informed storytelling workshop to everyone who speaks with victims of traumatic events!”
“I have just sat through such an insightful and informative conversation about how journalists report trauma stories. Thank you, Tamara Cherry, for sharing your stories and research. It has completely made me reflect on how I approach certain stories.”
“What an emotional rollercoaster Tamara Cherry’s webinar on trauma-informed interviewing for journalists was. I learned so much. Highly recommend listening to her to any journalist whose beat requires interviewing traumatized people often.”