The Trauma Beat - #9 - Cijay Morgan

Agnes Morgan was a devoted parishioner who headed up not one, but several committees at her church. She was also a mother with gentle lessons. Her resting face was a smile. There were so many delightful things about her.

But when she was struck and killed by a drunk driver in 2013, she became, quite simply, “senior citizen.”

“My mom didn’t die because she was a 77-year-old lady crossing the street,” Agnes’s daughter, Cijay Morgan, says in conversation with host Tamara Cherry. “My mom died because somebody chose to drink for 14 hours and then get behind the wheel of a car instead of staying where he was.”

From questions asked of survivors to words and photos used in stories, Cijay discusses the basic building blocks of a journalist’s story that can be of the utmost significance to a victim’s family. Cijay speaks about the impact of media coverage of other impaired driving cases. “The world just starts spinning,” she says.

Cijay also shares advice for other survivors faced with media coverage, including the importance of appointing someone to field calls from journalists. “This is your time. And if closing all the curtains and doors and going into your basement is how you’re going to handle it, then do that. You don’t owe any interviews, appearances.”

As per trauma-informed practice, each guest in The Trauma Beat podcast is afforded the opportunity to review and veto a list of anticipated questions before the recorded conversation. Ongoing, informed consent is sought throughout the production process.

This conversation was recorded in March 2022.

For more trauma-informed journalism resources, visit pickupcommunications.com.

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