Last week’s Writer’s Life Lecture Series featured Washington Post and Reuters News Service video journalist Brad Horn, where he discussed the challenges of video journalism and gave tips on how to break into the field.
The program was moderated by L. David Hansen, instructor and program director of journalism and film at Madison College, and co-hosted by Olivia Petersen, Creative Arts Intern.
This past fall, Horn worked for the Reuters agency, covering the candidates’ visits to Wisconsin. He was a videographer at 12 or 13 Trump rallies and 5 or 6 Harris rallies.
Reuters coverage evolved from filming the candidate, running the video and interviewing people after they left. “It was interesting to talk to people. I was shocked that Trump supporters were as diverse as they were. I thought they were like me, white guys,” Horn said.
An award-winning storyteller specializing in video journalism and short-form filmmaking, Horn discussed his projects for The Washington Post, including “First and 17,” which became the media company’s first documentary feature film in 2013. Horn mentioned the year-long schedule documenting a football player’s life and the need to build trust with his subject. The project earned an Emmy Award and was honored as the Multimedia Project of the Year by the Associated Press Sports Editors. That same year, Horn was recognized with the Multimedia Photographer of the Year Award of Excellence from Pictures of the Year International.
Horn’s career has taken him to NPR as a freelance reporter, to working at the Washington Post as a video journalist. Still, eventually he realized he had a calling to teach Video Journalism.
He stressed that it was important to him to give up on his ego pursuing some sort of mediocre fame and knew he wanted “to help young people to have a less crappy experience than I had. Being the teacher that I so wish I had,” Horn said.
He told the student audience they were fortunate to attend Madison College, which offers the chance to gather information, tell stories and push buttons. He also said that Madison College tends to be more accessible than four-year colleges.
Horn said it helps to major in Film or related areas to get a foot in the door of video storytelling. A bachelor’s degree is important, but not necessarily a master’s, because it is more critical to be able to create the work.
When asked about what inspired him in video storytelling, Horn said it’s really rewarding and gratifying when someone trusts you to the point where they’ll let all their worts hang out, put their kids to bed in front of you and get out of the shower in front of you. “When you get to the level of intimacy with somebody you’re documenting their life, it’s a real high,” Horn said.
With such a varied and prestigious career, working in writing and storytelling at legacy media outlets, the audience asked about career advice. For Horn, it was not about sending out resumes or learning a specific skill but about looking inward and self-introspection.
He encouraged people to ask why they hesitate to do things they don’t want. If someone has a choice between two options, they should consider why they are reluctant to pursue the other option, even if the question seems more challenging.
Horn said it is a people-driven industry; the more people you get to know, the better. He recommended scheduling face time to get to know people and network. Another step would be to talk to Madison professionals already working in the field.
An audience member asked what job skills he had to develop that he hadn’t anticipated needing.
Horn didn’t hesitate and said, “Being better at working with other people. I have lost jobs and opportunities because I was difficult to work with. I had to learn over time that getting my way is really not that important compared to being someone that you would want to work with.”