A Sit-Down With Amna Nawaz of PBS News Hour

WE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK WITH AN INFLUENTIAL TV REPORTER ON AMNA NAWAZ, THE CO ANCHOR OF PBS NEWS HOUR. AN AWARD WINNING PROGRAM FROM OUR NETWORK DURING A RECENT VISIT TO FLORIDA GULF COAST UNIVERSITY. SHE JOIN TO MEET RIGHT HERE IN THE STUDIO TO TALK ABOUT HER LIFE IN JOURNALISM. WE ARE JOINED TODAY BY THE EMMY AWARD-WINNING JOURNALIST AND CO ANCHOR OF PBS NEWSHOUR MISS ON THAT. DO FOSDICK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US TODAY. YOU SO MUCH FOR HAVING ME. IT'S INTERESTING TO SEE HERE. I'M SO GRATEFUL THAT YOU'RE ABLE TO BE IN STUDIO. >> WITH US TODAY. ABSOLUTELY. IT'S A REAL PLEASURE THAT CAN YOU WALK US THROUGH WHAT A DAY IN THE LIFE OF BEING A PBS CO ANCHOR IS HOW DOES YOUR DAY START? >> AND IT'S A BUSY ONE. I CAN SAY THAT IT STARTS PRETTY EARLY. I MEAN, I THINK WE KNOW THESE DAYS NEWS REALLY MOVES AT THE SPEED OF LIGHT AND IT'S NOT LIKE WE WAKE UP WITH A FRESH START EVERY SINGLE DAY. THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS THAT BREAK OVERNIGHT OR LATE THE NIGHT BEFORE. SO A LOT OF MY MORNING EARLY MORNING EXPECT CATCHING UP ON HEADLINES CALLING SOURCE IS CATCHING UP ON EMAILS CONNECTING WITH MY TEAM. WE HAVE OUR FIRST MORNING CALL WITH OUR ENTIRE NEWS. OUR TEAM AT ABOUT 9 O'CLOCK KIND OF SHARE IDEAS. FOR THE DAY WE HEAR PITCHES FROM ALL OUR SENIOR EDITORS ON DIFFERENT BEATS AND FROM THERE, IT'S SORT OF A SPRINT UNTIL 6 O'CLOCK EASTERN EVERY NIGHT WHEN THE SHOW GOES OUT LIVE. AND I WILL TELL YOU THE SHOW CHANGES AT LEAST A DOZEN TIMES BETWEEN 9 O'CLOCK IN THE MORNING. AND 6 O'CLOCK AT NIGHT. AND THAT'S NEWS. >> HOW DO YOU DETERMINE WHAT GOES INTO YOUR NEWSCAST AND HOW HOW DO YOU DETERMINE WHAT YOUR LEADERS FOR THE DAY? IT'S A DIFFERENT MIX EVERY DAY. AND I'M SURE YOU SEE THIS IN THE STORIES YOU COVER AS WELL. >> EVERY DAY THERE'S A STORY WE START WITH THAT THE TOP TOP OF THE DAY AND SAY, OKAY, THIS IS PROBABLY THE MOST IMPORTANT STORY. SOMETIMES THAT CHANGES BECAUSE THE PRESIDENT SAYS SOMETHING NEWS EVENTS HAPPEN. THERE'S BREAKING NEWS ACROSS THE COUNTRY OR THE WORLD. BY THE TIME WE GET TO 6 O'CLOCK, IT'S A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT SHOW THAN IT WAS WHEN WE STARTED THAT MORNING. THE QUESTION I LIKE TO ASK MYSELF IS WHAT IS OF THE MOST IMPORTANCE TO OUR AUDIENCE? WHAT IMPACTS THE MOST PEOPLE? THAT'S GENERALLY A BIG QUESTION THAT I THINK HELPS US GET TO WHAT WE COULD CONSIDER THE MOST IMPORTANT STORY. MAYBE IT'S THE WAR IN IRAN. MAYBE IT'S GAS PRICES. MAYBE IT'S THE ECONOMY. MAYBE IT'S HEALTH CARE OR MAYBE IT'S IMMIGRATION. IT REALLY KIND OF DEPENDS ON THE MIX OF STORIES ON THAT DAY AND WHAT HAPPENED THAT SPECIFIC IN THE GOOD NEWS IS WE HAVE THE NEXT DAY TO START OVER AND TRY TO GET IT RIGHT ONCE MORE. AND THE BEAUTY OF PBS NEWS HOUR IS THE FACT THAT YOU CAN GO LONGER AND SPEND TIME IN DEPTH ON THESE TOPICS AND THEN HAVE YOUR INTERVIEWS. THAT'S RIGHT. I MEAN, IT IS ONE OF THE HALLMARKS OF PUBLIC TELEVISION, I THINK, AT LARGE. AND THAT INCLUDES YOUR TEAM HERE IN THE THE CONTENT OF THE STORIES YOU PUT OUT, WE VALUE THOUGHTFUL, SUBSTANTIVE DISCUSSIONS. AND I THINK IT'S ONE OF THOSE THINGS THAT SETS US APART FROM EVERYONE ELSE IN THE FIELD, CERTAINLY FROM OTHER NEWS OUTLETS BECAUSE PEOPLE COME TO US WHEN THEY KNOW THEY'RE GOING TO GET SMART QUESTIONS. TOUGH, RIGOROUS INTERVIEWS, BUT ALSO THE KIND OF EMPATHETIC STORYTELLING THAT YOU DON'T GET IN A REAL LONG FORMAT. THESE DAYS, 100%. NOW YOU HAD YOUR YOU WERE EDUCATED UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA, CORRECT? YEAH. AND THEN YOU WENT TO THE LONDON SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS AND >> HOW DID YOU END UP BECOMING A JOURNALIST AND WHY I TOTALLY FELL INTO IT. IT'S A TERRIBLE EXAMPLE FOR OTHER JOURNALISM STUDENTS OUT THERE WHO I REALLY ENCOURAGED TO JOIN THE FIELD. WE NEED YOU NOW MORE THAN EVER. BUT I WAS SUPPOSED TO GO TO LAW SCHOOL. THAT WAS THE PLAN COMING OUT OF UNDERGRAD AND I GRADUATED IN 2001. I STARTED AN INTERNSHIP JUST TO KIND OF PUT OFF LAW SCHOOL IN AUGUST OF 2001. AND THAT HAPPENED TO BE AT ABC NEWS. I THOUGHT I'LL TRY THIS TV THING FOR A WHILE. AUGUST 2, 2001 WAS MY VERY FIRST INTERNSHIP DAY 9.11 HAPPENED. THE WHOLE WORLD CHANGED MY PLACE IN THIS WORLD CHANGED. AND I SAW THE BEST IN THE BUSINESS RISE TO MEET THE MOMENT AT THIS TIME OF INCREDIBLE FEAR AND UNCERTAINTY FOR THIS COUNTRY IN THE WORLD. AND I JUST FOUND MISSION. I FOUND MY PLACE. I FOUND SOMETHING I WAS GOOD AT SOMETHING. I FELT LIKE I COULD MAKE A DIFFERENCE WITH. AND I'VE LITERALLY BEEN A JOURNALIST EVER SINCE THEN BECAUSE OF THAT DAY. >> FROM THAT INTERNSHIP AT ABC. CARRY US FORWARD AND TELL ME WHAT YOUR CAREER PATH LOOK LIKE. YEAH. SO AS YOU NOTED, I LEFT FOR A YEAR. I WENT TO GET MY MASTERS BASICALLY BECAUSE MY JOB, MY BOSS AT THE TIME SAID, IF YOU DON'T GO GET YOUR MASTERS NOW, YOU NEVER WILL. >> AND THIS JOB WILL BE HERE WAITING FOR YOU. THE NEWS NEVER GOES ANYWHERE. SO I MOVED TO LONDON AND THE IRAQ WAR STARTED. AND I FELT THIS PULL TO GET BACK INTO IT. AND I SAID THIS IS WHAT I GOT TO BE DOING. SO I WENT TO NBC NEWS BECAME A FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT THERE TRAVELED THE WORLD. I COVERED THE WAR IN AFGHANISTAN ON COVERED IRAQ. I WENT ON TO COVER THE WAR IN SYRIA. COVERED. NATURAL DISASTERS AND BREAKING NEWS AROUND THE PLANET. AND THEN I HAD CHILDREN. I REBASED BACK TO THE UNITED STATES. MY HUSBAND AND I LIVED IN NEW YORK. WE HAD OUR 2 DAUGHTERS, THEIR WORK FOR ABC NEWS. I DID A LOT OF ELECTION COVERAGE FOR THEM. AND THEN PBS NEWSHOUR CALLED AND IT WAS THE PRIVILEGE OF A LIFETIME TO BE ABLE TO JOIN THE TEAM AND MOVED DOWN TO THE SEA, WHICH IS WHERE THE TEAM IS BASED. THAT'S AWESOME. WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR MORE MEMORABLE STORIES WHEN YOU WERE COVERING INTERNATIONAL CONFLICTS SO MANY? I'M SURE I THINK THE THING ABOUT COVERING MORE IS THAT IT'S A REAL SORT OF. NEW FOUNDATIONS SETTING. ONCE YOU'VE COVERED PEOPLE IN THE ABSOLUTE WORST CONDITIONS, EVERYTHING ELSE IS RELATIVE TO THAT. AND I HAD THE PRIVILEGE OF BEING ABLE TO GO BACK TO THE COUNTRY IN THE ORIGINALLY COMES FROM. THEY'RE ORIGINALLY FROM PAKISTAN AND I WOULD BOUNCE BETWEEN PAKISTAN AND HONEST ON COVERING THE U.S. MORE IN UPON US ON. AND I THINK WHAT I LEARNED FROM THAT WAS SOMETHING WE PROBABLY ALL KNOW TO BE TRUE, WHICH IS PEOPLE ARE THE SAME EVERYWHERE. EVERYONE WANTS THE SAME THING FOR THEIR CHILDREN, FOR THEIR FAMILIES, FOR THEMSELVES. THE DETAILS OF OUR LIVES ARE WHAT SET US APART. AND I THINK THE STORIES THAT STUCK WITH ME WERE THE STORIES OF INDIVIDUAL PEOPLE. YOU KNOW, WOMEN, YOUNG WOMEN LIKE ME WHO JUST HAPPENS TO BUY A TWIST, DEFEAT, BE BORN IN A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT PART OF THE WORLD WITH COMPLETELY DIFFERENT OPPORTUNITIES AND OUTLOOKS AND HOW THEY NAVIGATED THEIR LIVES AND THEIR CHALLENGES. AND I THINK I TRY TO CARRY THAT INTO WHATEVER STORYTELLING I DO BECAUSE THAT THAT'S THE UNDERPINNING OF ALL OF THIS IS THERE'S REALLY VERY LITTLE THAT SEPARATES US IN THIS WORLD. >> IF YOU HAD THE ABILITY TO IMPART ADVICE TO YOUNG GIRLS FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD, THAT MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN GETTING IN THE FIELD OF JOURNALISM. WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO SHARE WITH THEM? SHOW UP? >> YOU KNOW, BRING YOUR WHOLE SELF. I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS I USED TO LOOK AT AS A DISADVANTAGE WHEN I WAS FIRST IN THE FIELD IS ONE OF IF YOU FEMALE WAR CORRESPONDENTS COVERING THESE WARS WAS I FELT I HAD TO BE LIKE THE MEN IN THE FIELD AND I HAD TO DO THINGS THE WAY THEY WERE DOING THINGS AND WHAT I REALIZED OVER TIME WAS MY OWN LIVED. EXPERIENCE MY OWN QUESTIONS THAT I HAD THAT WERE SOMETIMES DIFFERENT FROM MY MALE COLLEAGUES. THAT'S WHAT MADE THE STORYTELLING DIFFERENT. THAT'S WHAT BROUGHT DIFFERENT ELEMENTS TO THOSE STORIES. AND TO THE NEWS REPORTS I WAS PRODUCING. AND I THINK WHAT WE NEED NOW MORE THAN EVER IS MORE VOICES FROM DIFFERENT BACKGROUNDS AND DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES. WE NEED JOURNALISTS TO REPRESENT THE COMMUNITIES THAT WE'RE COVERING. SO TO ANYONE OUT THERE INTERESTED. >> WE WELCOME YOU. WHAT IS YOU'RE CONCERNED ABOUT THE FUTURE OF NEWS, ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU LOOK AT HOW YOUNG PEOPLE ARE TAKING IN THEIR NEWS ON TIKTOK. THEY'RE NOT WATCHING. THEY'RE NOT WATCHING PBS NEWS HOUR. >> THEY'RE NOT WATCHING US ON TELEVISION. THAT'S FOR SURE. THEY'RE NOT SITTING DOWN ON THE COUCH AND TURNING ON THE TELEVISION THAT 06:00PM EASTERN. BUT THEY ARE STREAMING. YES, WE DO STREAM LIVE ON YOUTUBE EVERY DAY. THOSE NUMBERS HAVE BEEN GROWING DRAMATICALLY. THEY DO. WATCH. OUR CLIPS WERE ON EVERY SINGLE SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM. AND I THINK THIS NOW STATISTIC THAT WE KNOW TO BE TRUE WHERE THE MAJORITY OF AMERICANS GET THEIR NEWS AND INFORMATION FROM SOCIAL MEDIA, THIS IS ACTUALLY AN ADVANTAGE FOR US. WE HAVE TO DO THE WORK OF SHOWING UP WHERE PEOPLE ARE. WE HAVE THE NEWS AND INFORMATION THAT WE KNOW PEOPLE NEED TO BE ABLE TO HAVE AN INFORMED ELECTORATE SO PEOPLE CAN MAKE DECISIONS ABOUT THEIR LIVES. WE HAVE TO BE WHERE THEY ARE. AND SO IT DOESN'T WORRY ME AS MUCH AS PEOPLE THINK IT MIGHT THAT PEOPLE ARE NECESSARILY SITTING DOWN AND WATCHING OUR LINEAR TELEVISION EVERY DAY. WE HAVE A CORE GROUP MILLIONS OF VIEWERS WHO DO THAT EVERY DAY FOR THE NEWS HOUR OR SO. GRATEFUL FOR THEM. BUT IT'S ALSO INCUMBENT ON US TO MAKE SURE WE'RE SHOWING UP WHERE THE REST OF THE NEWS CONSUMERS ARE IN GETTING OUR INFORMATION INTO THEIR HAND. YOU HAVE TO BE ADAPTIVE. WE DO. >> WE DO. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US TODAY. AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO SHARING MORE OF YOUR STORY ON OUR SHOW. COMING UP ON SOUTHWEST FLORIDA IN FOCUS. SUCH A PLEASURE. THANKS FOR HAVING ME. THANK YOU.