"The AFPC is a stimulating place to broaden my professional development"

Maddalena Maltese is an Italian journalist based in New York. She is a foreign correspondent for the news agency Radiocor-Il Sole 24 ore. For several years she covered politics, migrations, criminal organizations, in southern Italy. As managing editor for Città Nuova editorial group in Rome, she led a team of local and foreign correspondents, traveling in several countries to cover Mediterranean migration, Greek and eurozone crisis, humanitarian projects in Kenya and the Middle East. For 3 years she reported on the Syrian war with daily testimonies. Two of her stories have been published in The Literacy Review by NYU Gallatin School. Fellow of Project Interchange AJC and passionate about intercultural and interreligious dialogue, she is a Religions for Peace ambassador and representative for New Humanity NGO at the United Nations in New York.

What does it take to become a foreign journalist in the US?

Maddalena Maltese

The courage to dare and go beyond certain schemes or established professional practices in my country of origin. The initial difficulties linked to the language, the new culture, and the bureaucracy are inevitable, but they cannot stop our curiosity, the investigation of a fact, walking the streets in search of a story. I haven't stopped questioning people since I arrived in New York, and I have always received stimulating answers, even if they were not what I would expect. It took time, patience, perseverance to find my way being a foreign journalist in this country, but it’s possible.

What prompted you to leave your country of origin and come to the United States to work as a foreign journalist?

I was editor-in-chief of the online version of a magazine based in Rome with 24 editions around the world. In 2017 the economic crisis halved the editorial staff, creating a lot of internal conflicts and I found myself at a crossroads: to stay and accept the unfair policies adopted, compromising my personal integrity or instead write a new page in my life and come to NY. I chose the second option. I am also part of an international movement that works for interreligious and intercultural dialogue. The New York office offered me the opportunity to collaborate on some projects as I continued my work as a journalist. I accepted, and from the managing editor position I had, I learned how to become a correspondent for various Italian news outlets.

Is there a unique perspective a foreign journalist can provide in analyzing the news from the United States?

I try to challenge the romantic or cinematic vision of America that many of us have inherited in our own country. When I investigate injustices, discrimination, misery, my readers react because I make them question their idea of “Hollywood America”. The same happens when I write about solidarity, philanthropy, kindness, humanitarian projects. The public feels undermined in its stereotypes of the United States as a police officer of the world or as a heartless capitalist. Unhinging stereotypes means opening new perspectives, offering different visions, being faithful to the complexity of facts and events that run through our professional life every day.

In your experience, what are the most challenging aspects of being a foreign journalist in the US?

Building a network of contacts, from scratch, was very demanding. That’s why I am so grateful for the Association of Foreign Press Correspondents in the United States because it has been and it is a stimulating place to broaden my professional development, my contacts, my horizons of knowledge. Secondly, convincing my editor not to follow the mainstream but to expand our readers’ universe by raising questions and not only reassuring answers. Another challenge is what I call the “six-month syndrome.” 

When I arrived in the US, for the first six months I was very bewildered by all the novelties and my articles didn’t go beyond the surface of a fact or an event. After six months, the “lights” became less dazzling and I found myself more committed to understanding US history more deeply, with its wounds and its victories. For this reason, I enrolled for a semester at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism to update my professional tools and now I’m pursuing a certification in Global Studies at NYU, in order to understand the global implications of American foreign policy.

How do you pursue your reporting in the US as an Italian correspondent?

As an Italian correspondent, one challenge was to learn how to narrate my country from an American perspective to my own country. It has been less arduous to cover US issues from the US angle than Italian ones. When I report about Italian politicians, entrepreneurs, celebrities, stylists that are always on the news, I wonder what I can add to that narrative. In general, after covering the topics my editor is interested in,  I often ask these well-known people how they navigate unknown waters or how they fight for their projects in a different arena. Their answers show similarities with our regular struggles and adversity. On another note, I would add that being an empathetic Italian allowed me to easily relate to people and to get sensitive and exclusive information, pivotal for my reporting.

 What threats do you see to journalism and how can foreign correspondents contribute to the fight against misinformation?

Maddalena Maltese

Partisanship and defamation claims are real threats to our profession, especially in Italy. When we stop giving voice to facts and to everyone involved in a fact because of the risk of a millionaire fine, we are betraying our duty to inform. When we are pushed more by pleasing a company or a politician and not by the impact of our reporting on people’s lives, we are misinformation spreaders. When hope is not part of our story because it’s difficult to find its sparkle in horrific situations, we are missing a relevant aspect of our news. Journalism is a tool to shape our understanding of the world and to shape our communities, near and far.

  As a foreign journalist, how does your point of view enable you to think outside the box when reporting news from the US?

I provide accurate analysis, comments, interviews, but stories are the most powerful instrument to think outside the box. During the migration crisis at the borders or after one of the several mass shootings, I reported news and facts. Polarization and divisiveness were, sometimes, my readers’ and followers’ reactions. However, when I told the story of a family crossing the border with little kids escaping misery and drug dealers in El Salvador, their comments were different and more empathetic. Or when I reported the loss of a mom or a brother or a friend during a shooting, my readers’ reactions were more compassionate, so I realized that a story could make them able to put themselves in the others’ shoes and to stand for injustice. Stories show an America as great and fragile as any other country in the world. There is never a single side to a story.

Would you give any advice to journalists aspiring to be foreign correspondents in the US?

First, be realistic and be aware: it’s not easy becoming a  foreign correspondent, and getting a visa is a huge challenge. Second, if you already live in the US, make a list of all the media that deal with the US and send them your portfolio, focusing on the untold side of the news. Third, be an expert on one or two American issues. Fourth, don’t give up and listen to the inner voice that pushed you into being a reporter and a storyteller. Fifth, join an association of foreign correspondents.