By Michele Cohen Marill, AHCJ Freelance Committee member
Health journalism provides plenty of compelling content. We tell stories of patients who have mystifying, painful or even incurable conditions, and we chronicle the causes and trajectory of diseases. But another fascinating narrative lies beyond the patient experience. Profiling the researcher who made an important new discovery or the doctor who specializes in treating a life-altering condition provides a different lens into medical care. Lunch & Learners agreed that profiles can be very satisfying to write — but also challenging to execute.
Here are some things to keep in mind:
- Think of profile writing as a way to tell a health story from the inside — for example, the effort to find a cure or to stop an infectious disease. It can give a human element to technical information about a scientific development, such as a new drug mechanism.
- You’ll need lots of access to your profile subject — time for extensive interviews and perhaps shadowing. While you immerse yourself in their world, also reach out to sources who can give you authentic perspective. That includes people not on the list of friends, family or colleagues provided by your subject. After all, you want to portray your subject as someone real, and everyone has flaws. (Talking to other sources can help you maintain objectivity — which can be difficult when you spend a lot of time with someone you truly admire.)
- Be prepared for a significant time commitment. An in-depth profile could run 3,000-plus words, depending on the publication. Your pitch also may need to be longer than your usual pitch, as you explain why this person’s story is interesting and important.
- With consolidation and cutbacks in journalism, it can be difficult to find an outlet that publishes full-length profiles. Magazines of universities and professional associations might be interested in a profile of one of their members, alumni or faculty. City and regional magazines, such as New York, Chicago, Texas Monthly or Washingtonian, run profiles of local people who have done something noteworthy. Discover magazine, Undark and National Geographic are examples of science/health publications that may run profiles of scientists/medical researchers.
- Despite the challenges, profile writing remains an important part of long-form narrative journalism. If you have a compelling idea with a central character, you may be able to convince an editor that a profile is the best way to explain a complex topic. For example, in “The Code Breaker”, Walter Jacobson explained the origins of gene editing through the story of one of the key researchers, Jennifer Doudna. While it sometimes delved deeply into technical content, the nonfiction book became a bestseller.
