MY STORY BEHIND THE STORY
Sudor Sobre El Asfalto (Sweat on the Asphalt)
A four-part news series on Univision’s KMEX television in Los Angeles

By Julio César Ortiz
IJJ Environmental Justice Fellow, 2009

The original story idea was to integrate ourselves in the lives of the independent truckers of the port of Long Beach and also to fully understand their lives once they get off the trucks.  We already knew that their economic situation was devastating and in some cases almost intolerable for this community of more than 16,000 families. But what we discovered really touched a sensitive nerve with our viewers. Originally we had in mind and planned to do a three-part series. The idea was to capture the life of the trucker, his family and his struggles to become recognized as an actual employee of the port. As the week progressed, while filming the truckers we stayed with, part four was born: “what do truckers do when an accident or age impedes them from operating an 18-wheeler?”

The biggest obstacle we encountered to getting deeper into their reality was accessibility to the ports.  We received testimonies of mistreatment, insults, and even harassment by security guards in charge of letting in hundreds of drivers to receive their containers. But we were denied access and our filming and interviewing stopped at the gates. 

What I learned from working on this story was that even before starting to interview, or pushing the record button on that camera, I had to establish rapport, trust and empathy with the truckers I wanted to shadow.  We were able to capture very intimate moments of struggle, sadness, desperation and impotence that it took me a few weeks to obtain.  I was “let into” their lives after they understood my reasons for asking for the invitation.  I would advise anybody working on stories like this to consider the humanity and humbleness that surrounds persons facing such socioeconomic situations.

While looking for contacts, I would advise: Dig deeper than the story you have already read or watched; look for voids, gaps or unanswered questions in those stories; if possible, try to obtain your contacts in the context where your story will develop -- talking to a trucker face to face got me deeper into the story. Finally, when you have the contacts, be realistic and analyze how much time you have to produce your story and what contacts are worth covering.

While shooting the story:  Be curious, but respectful; be direct but tactful; point out your sources’ socio-economic disadvantage but be empathetic to the way they live. Finally, take note of the visual and olfactory essence of your surroundings while you are in the middle of the reporting in order to transmit it into your story when you sit down in front of your monitor to start writing it.

The story was broadcasted on my station, KMEX, part of the Univision network, in Los Angeles, on our morning newscasts. That is the time when more truckers and their families are awake and also it is a time when people heading out to work have an opportunity to see how thousands of truckers are struggling to put food on their table.  It was also posted in our station’s Web site for people to share or comment on the trucker’s conditions.

What we found was that the truckers’ monetary struggles – living on the edge of poverty -- are only the beginning of a deeper, communitywide problem. The truckers’ physical as well as their emotional health slowly deteriorates -- as do the tires of their 18-wheelers. The truckers’ equipment is generally older and not in top condition so their vehicles tend to emit more health-damaging fumes. Residents in the main truck corridors are reporting more and more respiratory problems. Because those living near the truckers’ routes tend to be lower-income residents, their socio-economic disadvantages do not allow them to move to better areas away from the air pollution.

And things are getting tougher for the independent truckers. Starting in January 1, 2010 more than 8,000 trucks that are older than 1993 or that don’t have a filter approved by the ports have not been allowed into the ports to load up containers, thus, generating excruciating psycho-socio-economic circumstances for anybody to face.

The majority of the viewer comments by phone calls, e-mails and face-to face feedback expressed surprise.  The majority of our audience did not know the conditions, the struggles and the hardships the independent truckers face.  In the majority of responses, there was a feeling of “I have more respect for those truckers now.”

The immediate impact of our series was the “empathetic” effect.  I feel that our audience now will be more sensitive when offering opinions or referring to the independent truckers.  Regarding potential long-term effect, I believe that if petitions, rallies or community involvement and support are requested by the trucker community, there will be a strong and continuous response.  It is too soon to measure the effect, but I believe we have “planted” the seed of awareness.

I believe that I would have been able to produce the story and to have done a good job on it, but the IJJ fellowship experience and the input of my colleagues stirred ideas, approaches and created excitement to develop the story.  The fellowship allowed me to shape my approach, my journalistic ideas and the product that I was seeking.  I went from “it is a trucker’s problem” mentality to “it is also our problem” if nothing is done about it.

Without this fellowship, my series would have been just another journalistic story that made it on the air with no effect. I believe that the experience of this fellowship and working with the other IJJ Fellows added an ingredient vital to the satisfaction I feel with the finished product: Justice.