Immersion journalism or immersionism is a style of

journalism Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the "news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree. The word, a noun, applies to the occupation (profes ...

similar to gonzo journalism. In the style, journalists immerse themselves in a situation and with the people involved. The final product tends to focus on the experience, not the writer.

Overview

Like Gonzo, immersionism details an individual's experiences from a deeply personal perspective. An individual will choose a situation, and immerse themselves in the events and people involved. Unlike Gonzo, however, it is less focused on the writer's life, and more about the writer's specific experiences. Proponents of immersion journalism claim this research strategy allows authors to describe the internal experience of external events and break away from the limiting pseudo-objectivity of traditional journalism.

Examples

Print

Book-length examples of immersion journalism include H.G. Bissinger's '' Friday Night Lights'';

John Howard Griffin John Howard Griffin (June 16, 1920 – September 9, 1980) was an American journalist and author from Texas who wrote about and championed racial equality. He is best known for his 1959 project to temporarily pass as a African Americans, black man ...

's ''

Black Like Me ''Black Like Me'', first published in 1961, is a nonfiction book by journalist John Howard Griffin recounting his journey in the Deep South of the United States, at a time when African-Americans lived under racial segregation. Griffin was a nat ...

'';

Ted Conover Ted Conover (born January 17, 1958)Ab ...

's ''Rolling Nowhere'', ''Coyotes'' and Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing;

Barbara Ehrenreich Barbara Ehrenreich (, ; ; August 26, 1941 – September 1, 2022) was an American author and political activist. During the 1980s and early 1990s, she was a prominent figure in the Democratic Socialists of America. She was a widely read and awar ...

's '' Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America'' (2001), ''Bait and Switch: The (Futile) Pursuit of the American Dream''; (2005),

A.J. Jacobs Arnold Stephen Jacobs Jr., commonly called A.J. Jacobs (born March 20, 1968) is an American journalist, author, and lecturer best known for writing about his lifestyle experiments. He is an editor at large for '' Esquire'' and has worked for the ...

'' The Year of Living Biblically'' (2007) and Matthew Thompson's ''Running with the Blood God'' (2013) and ''My Colombian Death'' (2008). VICE Films champions an immersionist style of reporting, and ''

Vice Magazine ''Vice'' (stylized in all caps) is a Canadian-American magazine focused on lifestyle, arts, culture, and news/politics. Founded in 1994 in Montreal as an alternative punk magazine, the founders later launched the youth media company Vice Media, ...

'' published several issues on the topic.

Film

Examples of immersionist film include the documentary ''

Super Size Me ''Super Size Me'' is a 2004 American documentary film directed by and starring Morgan Spurlock, an American independent filmmaker. Spurlock's film follows a 30-day period from February 1 to March 2, 2003, during which he ate only McDonald's f ...

'' and ''

Heavy Metal in Baghdad ''Heavy Metal in Baghdad'' is a 2007 rockumentary film following filmmakers Eddy Moretti and Suroosh Alvi as they track down the Iraqi heavy metal band Acrassicauda amidst the Iraq War. Synopsis In 2003, the Iraqi heavy-metal band Acrassicauda ...

'' and ''

Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead ''Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead'' is a 2010 American documentary film which follows the 60-day journey of Australian Joe Cross across the United States as he follows a juice fast to regain his health under the care of Joel Fuhrman, Nutrition Resear ...

''.

Television and radio

Examples of immersionist programming include the various offerings of media company ''

Vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, or habit generally considered immoral, sinful, criminal, rude, taboo, depraved, degrading, deviant or perverted in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character tra ...

'' and segments of US public broadcasting series like ''

Frontline Front line refers to the forward-most forces on a battlefield. Front line, front lines or variants may also refer to: Books and publications * ''Front Lines'' (novel), young adult historical novel by American author Michael Grant * ''Frontlines ...

'', ''

Planet Money ''Planet Money'' is an American podcast and blog produced by NPR. Using "creative and entertaining" dialogue and narrative, ''Planet Money'' claims to be "The Economy Explained." History The podcast was created by Alex Blumberg and Adam Davids ...

'', and ''

This American Life ''This American Life'' (''TAL'') is an American monthly hour-long radio program produced in collaboration with Chicago Public Media and hosted by Ira Glass. It is broadcast on numerous public radio stations in the United States and internation ...

''.

Notable figures

Elizabeth Jane Cochrane

Elizabeth Jane Cochrane, known by her pseudonym Nellie Bly is seen as a "pioneer" of immersion journalism.Hemley, R. (2012). ''A Field Guide for Immersion Writing: Memoir, Journalism, and Travel''. Athens: University of Georgia Press. Cochrane made herself the center of the story when she was admitted to a mental asylum undercover to expose the abuse of female inmates at the Women's Lunatic Asylum on

Blackwell's Island Roosevelt Island is an island in New York City's East River, within the borough of Manhattan. It lies between Manhattan Island to the west, and the borough of Queens, on Long Island, to the east. Running from the equivalent of East 46th to 85 ...

. The series, ''Ten Days in a Mad-House'', was published in ''

New York World The ''New York World'' was a newspaper published in New York City from 1860 until 1931. The paper played a major role in the history of American newspapers. It was a leading national voice of the Democratic Party. From 1883 to 1911 under publi ...

'' in 1887. The legitimacy of her tactics as a form of credible journalism has been questioned, as she placed in Time's "Top 10 Literary Stunts" which describes journalists who have "elevated the literary gimmick" of immersing themselves in atypical scenarios.

Jon Franklin

Jon Franklin Jon is a shortened form of the common given name Jonathan, derived from "YHWH has given", and an alternate spelling of John, derived from "YHWH has pardoned".Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made h ...

for an article he wrote for the ''Evening Sun'' in 1979. Franklin followed a woman through her brain surgery. Unexpectedly, the woman died, and he instead focused his piece on the surgeon, Dr. Ducker. The article includes the details of the doctor's emotionally draining career and the suspense of Mrs. Kelly's operation.

Criticism

Immersion journalism has been criticized for being too subjective and partial to the journalist's opinion. By immersing oneself in the subject for extended periods of time, the credibility of the writer's neutrality weakens. A ''

Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'' seven-part article which followed

Vice President Quayle James Danforth Quayle (; born February 4, 1947) is an American politician who served as the 44th vice president of the United States from 1989 to 1993 under President George H. W. Bush. A member of the Republican Party, Quayle served as a U.S ...

went under fire for its lack of neutrality. ''

Washington City Paper The ''Washington City Paper'' is a U.S. alternative weekly newspaper serving the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. The ''City Paper'' is distributed on Thursdays; its average circulation in 2006 was 85,588. The paper's editorial mix is focused ...

'' editor Jack Shafter said the reporters "got way, way too close. With this kind of immersion journalism, you lose perspective, you lose sight of the goal, and you become this authorized biographer." Robin Hemley's book ''A Field Guide for Immersion Writing: Memoir, Journalism, and Travel'' describes David Shield's book ''Black Planet'' which observed white fans' "fascination" with black basketball players. Shield "exaggerated and conflated a few things" but was not untruthful. Hemley says that he received scathing reviews, which was a hidden success, since it proved that Shields "hit a nerve." Practicality also becomes a central issue opposing immersion journalism. A complete work of immersion journalism have flexible deadlines, which not all news sources can afford. The ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' writer Jesse McKinley spent a month working alongside actors to "expose the daily torment that is life way-way off Broadway." Anne Hull of the ''

St. Petersburg Times The ''Tampa Bay Times'', previously named the ''St. Petersburg Times'' until 2011, is an American newspaper published in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. It has won fourteen Pulitzer Prizes since 1964, and in 2009, won two in a single ...

'' worked six months following the lives of a Tampa police officer and the teen who attacked her. However, many news sources value quick stories at a rapid pace to increase profits, according to the ''

Columbia Journalism Review The ''Columbia Journalism Review'' (''CJR'') is a biannual magazine for professional journalists that has been published by the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism since 1961. Its contents include news and media industry trends, ana ...

''.

References

{{Journalism Types of journalism