They were 85 in all, some reading more than once, taking a 15-minute slot at a time, 96 of which were apportioned. The Journal's Washington bureau chief, Paul Beckett, read during several legs, as did O'Reilly. Social media took note: "There was a huge social media response. The Evan hashtags were trending on Twitter," retired executive director and now NPC press freedom consultant Bill McCarren told the Wire. He knew about that because he'd been tweeting
Journalists power through 24 hours of Gershkovich read-a-thon based at Club
Washington, D.C., 7:40 a.m. EDT, July 20: The tweet says "Costa: Evan, if you somehow hear this event please know that so many reporters at the Journal and at other outlets are standing with you and hope to see you home safely soon with your family and colleagues."
Twenty minutes later, the read-a-thon to show support for Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and call attention to his more than 100 days of detention in Russia crossed its finish line, with National Press Club President Eileen O'Reilly on the anchor leg of the 24-hour relay.
Club member and CBS News chief election and campaign correspondent Robert Costa was at the Club early Thursday morning to take his turn reading from Gershkovich's portfolio of foreign correspondence, which has been silenced since he was taken into custody in Russia in March while on a reporting trip and accused of espionage, a first for an American journalist in that place on such charges since the Cold War.
The read-a-thon began at 8 a.m. Wednesday, July 19, from the Zenger Room at the Club. It was livestreamed as it threaded its way through the hours, journalist after journalist plus some others showing support by passing the baton as the course stretched ahead to Singapore and London before the readers paced the script down the homestretch back in Washington.
Paul Beckett, WSJ Washington bureau chief. Photo: Alan Kotok
(@mccarrennews) throughout, noting what Costa said to Gershkovich as the event was nearing its appointed hour of closing.
The Club's broadcast studio on the 4th floor controlled a fixed-position camera on the 13th floor. Backed by the NPC logos on the curtain wall, readers sat in front of the camera and used their voices to carry the day, watching a clock or two to know when it was time to hand off to the next reader. Snacks and coffee were available for an energy boost, but organizers seeing the event through probably got the most benefit from those.
So many contributed, it's hard to credit them all. Anyone watching the livestream could tell there was preparation in advance. The ring binder that readers were leafing through? It was a big one, with over 200 pages of copy. Alana Sweeting on the NPC Staff Membership Team pulled the stories written by Gershkovich and printed them out, making them easier to read aloud.
McCarren stayed in the room with the camera at the Club until midnight, reading the leg before Washington signed off for overnight and the Journal's Singapore bureau took the baton for three hours. Then he moved to the studio to monitor the overnight segment. Broadcast engineer Jeff Blake stayed up all night to handle the transitions to the other time zones, which included London after Singapore before the Club took the feed back at 6 a.m. Thursday, July 20. McCarren was on hand to shepherd the entire 24 hours, which transitioned seamlessly, and to work with those arriving to read during the Washington segments.
NPC Staff Membership Team members Kate Helster and Cecily Scott-Martin handled most of the event set-up and logistics. Randy Hall coordinated planning with the Wall Street Journal tech teams.
When word went out calling for volunteers to read, the mother of a reporter contacted the Wire wondering whether her daughter, a friend of Gershkovich and colleague in covering Russia, would get to participate in the read-a-thon now that she was back in Ukraine reporting. There are so many who have been showing support for Gershkvich since he was first detained – the read-a-thon was a magnet for them.
Gershkovich's father, mother, sister. Photo: Alan Kotok
Gershkovich's father and sister were at the Club to read, supported by his mom, who did not read during the event.
Journalist Jason Rezaian, himself the subject of a read-a-thon in December 2015 while detained in Iran, was a reader, as was his wife Yegi, who was also a prisoner for 72 days.
One Wall Street Journal reporter who read used her computer because she is blind.
One journalist spoke in Russian.
Several journalists – especially in London – mentioned their friendships with Gershkovich.
Emma Tucker, the executive editor of the WSJ, taped a reading that was shown in the London segment.
No resting on laurels now the read-a-thon is done, as the journalism community looks ahead for action on the release of Gershkovich and what next steps might need to be taken to keep a focus on his plight.