Oral histories offer students a personalized perspective on historical events by showing how one or more individuals experienced or understood an event, as told from their point of view. In some cases, an oral history provides insight about a particular profession and its broader role in society. For example, an oral history interview with a newspaper journalist gives perspective about the profession, a particular era in U.S. history, and the journalist’s role.
The Library’s new Newspaper Journalism Primary Source Set features an oral history interview with Moses James Newson. He covered, among many things, school desegregation campaigns during the civil rights movement. Two excerpts show how listening to a journalist’s perspective can bring new understanding to historical events as well as the role journalists play in a democratic society.
We recommend playing each excerpt before introducing the transcripts. Students might consider the differences between hearing about someone’s experiences and reading a transcription.
Throughout, encourage students to note unfamiliar or confusing details, or details that need clarification.
Excerpt one (4:25-6:10) highlights Mr. Newson’s motivations for becoming a newspaper journalist. (Transcript starts at “I want to turn to Mr. Newson and ask a little bit about. . .”) Teachers may use these prompts to focus students’ analysis:
- What do they notice first? What details does Mr. Newson offer about his motivations for becoming a journalist? What stands out to the students and why?
- Listen for the section where Mr. Newson remarks that some newspapers were “telling quite a different story.” What do they think he means by that and why?
- If they could ask him a question, what would it be?
In excerpt two (30:50 – 40:00), Moses Newson reflects on covering school integration at Little Rock Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. (Transcript starts on image 10 with MN: “I think Little Rock turned out to be…”) Teachers might pose the following prompts while students listen to and watch the clip:
- What do they notice about the way Mr. Newson describes the situation in Little Rock, such as his words, phrases, motions and speaking patterns?
- Mr. Newson remarks that he “had to stop writing and listen to people, what they were going through.” What do they think he means? Why might he have said that?
- Challenge students to revisit the parts of the interview that were unfamiliar or needed clarification. Encourage them to brainstorm ways that they could learn more, such as investigating other sources.
If time allows, encourage students to read an article from a local newspaper: Arkansas State Press, September 13, 1957. It reports on the same events as Mr. Newson. Students might notice the image of Elizabeth Eckford and recall his description of her experiences. What insights does the oral history offer that the newspaper does not, and vice versa? Why might both sources be important?
Find more interviews in the American Folklife Center’s digital collections, and try the the teacher’s guide and analysis tool for analyzing oral histories.
If you use oral histories in the classroom, we’d like to hear about it! Please share your thoughts in the comments.
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