History, Journalism, Haiti: Reflections on the New York Times "The Ransom" Series

History, Journalism, Haiti: Reflections on the New York Times "The Ransom" Series (April 15, 2022) brought together the NYT team and several historians of Haiti based in Haiti and elsewhere to talk about the opportunities and the processes for making complex history into news. "The Ransom" series investigated the deep history of Haiti, its liberatory Revolution, and the extortion of its resources over centuries. The series, which consulted scholars and included a lengthy bibliography of source material, prompted international action and commentary. It also offered a wonderful case study of the role of investigative journalists, historians, and other scholars in making history news. Click on the link above to view the YouTube recording of the event in English with Haitian Creole subtitles.

In related news, George S. Parker II ’51 Curator of Maps and Prints Bertie Mandelblatt has written a blog post titled "Seeing the Haitian Revolution First-Hand" on  an extraordinary and rare image of a key moment in the Haitian Revolution held at the JCB. “Passage des onze jours de Pillage de la ville du Cap” is the work of J.L. Boquet, the same French painter who created one of most striking images featured in the New York Times’ in-depth coverage of the Haitian debt in the years following the Haitian Revolution (1791-1804). Learn more here: https://jcblibrary.org/news/seeing-haitian-revolution-first-hand.