Tell Me a Story In this age of YouTube and Netflix, knowing how to engage an audience using a personal narrative and a well-crafted video is an important new skill for public health experts. By Tim Paul Columbia Mailman School students are experts in analyzing data and reporting the results with the dispassionate voice of scientific authority. Now, a workshop in digital storytelling at the Lerner Center for Health Promotion is teaching them to tell visually rich personal stories. “Science and scientific writing are central to public health. So too is the ability to connect with an audience on an emotional level,” says Gina Wingood, MPH, ScD, a professor of Sociomedical Sciences and director of the Lerner Center. “Facts matter, but in the
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world of public health advocacy, one of the most powerful ways to motivate people to be healthy is through stories that are supported by facts.” In the spring, facilitators with StoryCenter, a Berkeley, CA, nonprofit organization, began the twoday workshop by giving students a series of writing prompts. They were asked to think about “The Fork in the Road” (a decisive moment in their life); “The Stand” (a time they stood up for themselves or others); and “The Scar” (a visible or invisible reminder of a transformative experi-
ence). As the group met to share first drafts and solicit feedback, facilitator Robert Kershaw encouraged the students to express a personal point of view grounded in concrete details of time and place. “Less helicopter. Land on the street. That’s where the story starts,” he said. The following day the group further refined their stories, then brought them to life using an online tool called WeVideo to create short videos that combine still and video images, music, and other sounds with a spoken narration. The completed videos show
2019–2020 EDITION
