Words of Colour’s Executive Director Joy Francis guests hosts the Media Diversity Institute’s Diversity Matters podcast which returns after a hiatus.
In conversation with award-winning human rights lawyer Marcia Willis-Stewart KC (Hon), Managing Partner and Director of Birnberg Peirce the question under scrutiny is when tragedy becomes a media story, who gets to tell it, and are the people most affected being heard?
Together, they examine how victims, survivors and families are represented in media coverage of disasters and miscarriages of justice, focusing on two tragedies that have had a lasting impact on public debate in the UK: Hillsborough and the Grenfell Tower fire.
The Hillsborough disaster took place in 1989, when a fatal crowd crush at a football match in Sheffield led to the deaths of 97 Liverpool supporters. In the aftermath, false allegations about supporters were widely reported, contributing to a narrative that blamed fans for the disaster. Bereaved families and survivors spent decades campaigning to establish the truth about what happened.
The Grenfell Tower fire in London in 2017 killed 72 people. The disaster and its aftermath raised major questions about building safety, regulation, accountability and how residents and affected communities were represented and heard.
Drawing on her experience representing families affected by both Hillsborough and Grenfell, Marcia discusses the relationship between legal advocacy, community activism and the media, and the importance of enabling people to speak for themselves rather than simply becoming subjects of a story.
The conversation asks what happens when communities challenge the narratives created around them, how journalism can contribute to accountability, and why those closest to tragedy can also be central to driving change.
You can listen to the podcast here.
