The responsibility of journalists

Having a look at Thembi’s blog I realized how important stories can be. Thembi's AIDS Diary has the goal to make her fellow citizens aware of the disease, the way it is transmitted and the implications it has on your life. Stories can really have humanitarian implications. Telling her own story is a way to give a face to AIDS. AIDS is Thembi. AIDS is a real; it is a person that exists in her body. And that’s what she says: “In the morning I say hello HIV, you are in my body, you have to respect me.” In this perspective, journalists who are telling stories such as Thembi’s one are not only profiling someone but working for humanitarian causes. They can make people aware and educate them the same way humanitarian organizations or missions try to educate and inform people on this issue. Thembi’s words on her blog really convey this responsibility she feels to talk about herself to help others. And we see how it was easy for her to give herself and her identity to a cause even if she was reluctant at first: “At first I wanted to keep my identity anonymous. At the same time people around me were dying on AIDS so I felt I had to disclose.”
I really felt the Iraqi I was profiling expected the same from me. He was really enthusiastic by the fact that I wanted to talk about him and about the non-profit organization he created. He was really thankful because he was convinced I was helping him. That was great to feel that journalists can be seen a source of hope and belief and not only as intrusive.