Journalists play a crucial role in revealing truths and countering disinformation. At the Marie Colvin Distinguished Lecture on February 26, Rhona Tarrant, executive editor of CBS News Confirmed, highlighted the significance of journalists today and the challenges of reporting remotely in a digital world.
Tarrant's presentation, titled “The New Battlefield: Open Source Investigations into Conflict and Disinformation,” explored the growing importance of open-source verification in conflict reporting. The event was held at the Charles B. Wang Center Theatre and organized by the Marie Colvin Center for International Reporting at Stony Brook University’s School of Communication and Journalism.
Open-source investigators utilize internet tools such as satellite imaging and social media verification to uncover significant stories, enabling reporters to access closed societies and conflict zones while exposing disinformation, human rights abuses, and war crimes. Mastery of this method is essential for today's journalists to establish truth.
Tarrant discussed her career shift from broadcast journalism to open-source journalism, emphasizing its role in complementing traditional reporting, particularly in conflict areas. She provided insights into the verification process used in modern newsrooms.
“When I got out of college, I knew I wanted to get into broadcast journalism,” said Tarrant, originally from Ireland with experience in radio and television. “I loved storytelling. But I got to a point in my career where a lot of things began to happen on social media, and I just wasn’t learning those skills in the newsroom that I was in at the time. So I made the leap.”
She explained that open-source journalism involves more than verification; it includes understanding counter-narratives online.
“There are sophisticated groups who push out counter-narratives, and also companies that do it for-profit,” she said. “Now we’re seeing people better understand the role of social media and shaping public narratives because that’s where people are getting their news. It’s particularly important now because it’s touching every part of journalism. Also, AI has brought with it a sort of paranoia about people not being able to believe what they see.”
Tarrant emphasized that open-source journalism is not intended to replace ground reporters but rather support them.
“That work is so vital, and this will never replace it,” she said. “The whole idea is that it can help journalists on the ground, and it can help newsrooms, and it’s a new layer of reporting that can supplement and help that work.”
She recounted three events influencing her journalistic approach: The Arab Spring (2010-11), ISIS's weaponization of media (2014), and Syria's Douma chemical attack (2018). Each event demonstrated how social media altered news coverage dynamics.
In response to a student question about journalism as a dying art during a Q&A session, Tarrant shared advice for aspiring journalists.
“It’s always been difficult to get into journalism,” she said. “When I was in college, the bottom fell out of the newspaper business in Ireland. You could not get a job as a journalist. So it can feel like you’re coming in at the worst time.”
However, she noted there remains an audience for deep reporting despite industry challenges.
“Anybody I know who’s successful in journalism has been down a long and winding road,” she said. “But there are still opportunities out there. You have to really love it. And if you still want to do it, you will be able to do journalism and do it well."
Sarah Baxter from Stony Brook University described Tarrant's lecture as "an eye-opening window into the future."
“Truth has never been more important than it is now," Baxter stated regarding disinformation concerns."Rhona’s job is important...it’s about research...Get out there; look at evidence."