Meet the OPC Members: Q&A With Vivienne Walt

Courtesy of Vivienne Walt

Courtesy of Vivienne Walt

Vivienne Walt has written for TIME magazine since 2003, and is also a contributor and roving correspondent for Fortune. She has reported from dozens of countries in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia, though wars, terrorism, revolutions and natural disasters. Recently she covered the Arab Spring revolutions and their aftermath, Europe’s migrant crisis, and the terror attacks in Paris and Brussels. A regular guest on TV and radio, Vivienne has also published in The New York TimesThe Washington PostThe Wall Street JournalNational Geographic, and Bloomberg BusinessWeek. Since 2015 she has been on the OPC Board of Governors.

Hometown: Raised in Cape Town, emigrated to New York City, now based in Paris.

Languages: English, French.

Year you joined the OPC: 1997

What drew you to international reporting: Growing up, I had a front-row seat to world history, watching the unraveling of apartheid in South Africa. After that I had this totally misguided idea that my reporting was all going to be about earth-shattering events.

Major challenge as a journalist: Stop nit-picking over every word and hit the send button already.

Best journalism advice received: An editor of mine once gave me two sentences to live by: “There’s no news in the newsroom” and “Go out and come back with something I don’t know.” I also have a sticker on my laptop which says, “Never assume. Always check.”

Worst experience as a journalist: The worst experiences as a journalist are better than good ones in most other jobs.

When traveling, you like to … Walk the streets with no preconceptions.

Hardest story: Almost always the story I’m currently working on. Nothing seems that hard once it’s done.

Most memorable interview: Two that come to mind: Nelson Mandela, a week after his release from prison, in his garden in Soweto to where hundreds of ordinary citizens traveled from across the country to greet him. And Saif Gaddafi in Libya shortly before the Libyan Revolution erupted in February 2011, at his farm outside Tripoli, when he told me he wanted “Democracy, just like in Holland.” Months later, I was watching him command a bloody crackdown against democracy protesters. And today he’s in custody, sentenced to death. A good lesson in how to view interview subjects with a dose of skepticism.

Journalism heroes: This year’s OPC award winners.

Advice for journalists who want to work overseas: Buy an air ticket to a newsworthy place, and work really hard when you get there. The rest will follow. What are you waiting for?

Dream job: Working for editors who say “go for it!” when I pitch getting on the road to do great stories, and who also have ideas of their own for me.

Favorite quote: Half of life is showing up. (See above under “Advice for journalists who want to work overseas”)

Place you’re most eager to visit: Damascus the day President Assad resigns.

Strangest assignment: I’d say little is more surreal than being alone with a TIME photographer in a cold-storage room in Misrata, and the near-naked corpse of Moammar Gaddafi, the morning after he was killed in October, 2011, with a crowd of excited families lined up outside, waiting for a glimpse.

Most common mistake you see: Anonymous quotes from people giving standard information that is readily available.

Twitter handle: @vivwalt. Please follow.

Want to add to the OPC’s collection of Q&As with members? Please contact patricia@opcofamerica.org.