Every day for two years we have been waking up and checking the news for the latest on the war in Ukraine.
(Almost) every day for two years, Martin Belam has been waking up, opening his laptop, and providing us this news from his flat in Walthamstow.
“It’s a weird, strange tightrope to be publishing some of the most contentious news stories that are going on for a popular news website.”
Martin Belam has been working at The Guardian for close to ten years, starting out as head of social media, before gradually working his way into the newsroom.
Probably best known for his Thursday Quiz, he also writes about Doctor Who, and live blogs Eurovision, politics, and of course, war.
“[My job] is really difficult, it’s really pressured.
“Occasionally you catch yourself looking at some photos and trying to work out whether this is too close-up on a dead body, and you think “wow this is a really weird thing to be doing for a living.””
Mental health is a long-discussed topic in journalism, which is even more poignant now with widespread use of social media and the internet.
“I do think there is something about the way that 24 hour news channels and the rise of the internet have worsened that and made it more difficult over the last 20 years.”
“It is a very demanding profession, and the people that succeed in it often end up giving up a lot in their personal lives and don’t have a lot of outside interests.”
Looking after your mental health is especially important when covering heavy and distressing issues, such as war, which can take a toll when you’re constantly exposed to it.
“It has affected me constantly doing wars over the last couple of years. I’ve been exposed to a lot of imagery that we won’t have published because it’s too graphic.”
He pauses for a moment, sighing deeply, then detailed how a picture of a wounded dog was the thing to tip him over the edge on a particularly rough day of work.
“The people in the situation at least know there’s a war going on. The dog doesn’t know.”
How does one navigate a situation like this? When you need to take a break, but the news won’t stop for anything?
When a breaking news story can come and go in the time it takes for you to go to the bathroom?
Belam takes his time to answer and was clearly struggling to muster a conclusive response.
“Say you’re covering [Ukraine war] 4/5 days a week, on the 2 days you’re not covering it I want to really try and avoid all news, which is difficult because I’m a journalist news-junkie type person, but also you don’t want to go back to work on Monday morning, you’ve got to be aware of what’s happened over the weekend. So very much trying to create a space between work and life.”
Halfway through the workday, you may see Martin Belam on a walk through London, live blogging from a café, or in the pub with a beer to close out his shift.
As he’s listing them off, he laughs while realising they don’t sound much like healthy coping mechanisms, but they seem to be working for now and he “loves” his job.
“It is a really depressing thing to be doing every day.” He admits.
“Sometimes I would wake up and look at my phone to see what’s been happening overnight and you’ll see your shift is about to be lots of people being pulled out from rubble and lots of really horrifying photos. Your heart sinks, this is going to be a really difficult and not enjoyable day to work.”
Underneath the weight of the job, it’s clear he still has uninhibited passion for his job.
Although it can be “difficult” and “stressful”, Martin wants to keep live blogging for some time to come.
“It really fits my set of skills, it sounds weird, but I enjoy doing it.”
Writing these blogs allows him to keep the world informed on the most serious and pervasive issues, and from time to time, he’s able to inject his dry humour into the doom and gloom.
Belam enjoys and respects the importance of his job and reveals that it’s the readers who keep him coming back.
“When you get the people emailing you about how much they appreciate the work, I find that very rewarding.”
“I love being on a live blog.”
