2014 Atlantic Journalism Awards Finalists
Attachments
| Slug/Label | Poet Laureate of Youth Now Radio |
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| Date Aired or Published | Sept 21/14 |
| Media outlet where first aired or published: | CBC Atlantic |
| Name of Program: | Atlantic Voice |
| If co-produced, list partner: | Christina Harnett |
| Location: | Halifax |
| List awards, grants: | None |
| Running time (TV/Radio): | 27:10 |
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Short explanation of the story and how it developed: Jackie read a Facebook status posted by El Jones, HRM's Poet Laureate, about a young man calling in from prison and reading his poems over the air on the Youth Now radio show. It was only when she tracked down Aidan's father, Dave, that she learned Aidan had been in jail for two years at that point - for stabbing a stranger in the chest and killing him. That happened when Aidan was 18 years old. It was while he was in jail that Aidan picked up a pen and started to write. She found this curious and remarkable: Aidan only has a grade nine education, he's been diagnosed with ADHD and depression. He also lives in an environment where the mere act of writing has compromised his physical safety, as other inmates have threatened him for writing - not to mention that, in jail, mere access to pens and paper is hard to come by. When she started talking to Aidan himself, she couldn't get over how fast he talks - but then came to understand that his speed was due to his ADHD, the fact that jailhouse phone calls only last minutes at a time, and also, at any moment, a fellow inmate could be behind him, threatening him. She also came to understand that this was a person who was literally writing for his life, writing to make sense of his crime - and writing to see if the act of creating, instead of destroying, can alter the person he might still yet become. This became the focus of the documentary: can Art transform? Can it heal? Can it change anything? And while this documentary is about Aidan - it was also always in Jackie's mind never to lose sight of the fact that another person lost their life at the hands of Aidan. The documentary starts with this reminder and ends with it. |
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Resources of the newsroom (money and time) available to complete the story: Jackie spent more than a year talking to Aidan and his family; we decided not to do the story until after his trial and all his court appearances were over. She conducted her interviews with him over the phone because that's how he communicates with the radio show. She conducted dozens of interviews with him through the spring and summer of 2014, and put the documentary together in early Fall. |
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