Rural Health Journalism Workshop 2024

In their award-winning film, Inheritance, filmmakers Matt Moyer and Amy Toensing shine a light on an issue that journalists rarely cover: the impact of generational substance use disorders on children. The problem’s complex roots are well known: lack of economic opportunity for millions of Americans, access to cheap and powerful opioids, and limited treatment options.

But the impact on current and future children is rarely discussed. INHERITANCE follows the story of a young boy named Curtis as he struggles to stay in school from age 11 to 18, as he is placed in foster care while the adults around him die of drug overdoses. This session explores the filmmaker’s approach to this difficult subject.

How did they build trust with the families depicted in the film? How did they attempt to preserve the dignity of their characters while telling such a harrowing story? You will leave this session with a renewed sense of the importance of thorough reporting and maintaining a focus on the opioid crisis’ most vulnerable witnesses.

Catherine Reid

Director of Education and Content, AHCJ
Reed was a professor at the Missouri School of Journalism for 17 years, where he served as editor of the Columbia Missourian, a newsroom lab for print and digital journalism students, taught health and public safety reporting, and designed and taught courses on trauma reporting and improving science communication for STEM and journalism students.

Ms. Reed comes to the School of Journalism from Prague, Czech Republic, where she was editor of the Prague Business Journal and a lecturer at the Center for Independent Journalism. She was a reporter and copy editor for several years and taught journalism before moving to the Czech Republic. She is a fellow at the DART Center for Journalism and Trauma and a long-time member of the AHCJ. Ms. Reed has published on the teaching hospital model of journalism education, training in trauma reporting, and more responsible and ethical reporting of mass shootings.

Matt Moyer

“INHERITANCE” Producer, Director, Cinematographer
Matt Moyer is a photographer and filmmaker committed to telling stories that raise awareness and improve the world. Moyer has covered 9/11 and the Iraq War in New York City for The New York Times and has photographed numerous features for National Geographic magazine. As a National Geographic Explorer, Moyer has photographed the looming water crisis in Egypt. His directed short documentaries have been featured in numerous media outlets, including the National Geographic Society and PBS. Moyer was named a Knight-Wallace Journalism Fellow at the University of Michigan in 2008 and was also awarded a Knight Fellowship at Ohio University in 2012. He regularly teaches at National Geographic Photo Camp, an organization that teaches photography to underserved youth around the world. Moyer also sits on the advisory board for the Siena School, a Washington, DC-based school for students with language-based learning disabilities.

Amy Toensing

“INHERITANCE” Producer/Director
Amy Toensing is a visual journalist committed to telling nuanced and profound stories. A regular contributor to National Geographic magazine for more than 20 years, Toensing has photographed and reported on cultures and topics around the world, including indigenous communities’ connections to the land, the impact of drought on communities in Australia, and women’s land and social rights in Uganda and India. Her recent projects have centered on conservation and human relations in the United States, including a rewilding project in Montana and the Northern Forest Canoe Trail, a 740-mile protected canoe path that runs from New York to Maine. Toensing has also co-directed two short documentary films, one about urban refugee children in Nairobi and one about women’s land rights in Uganda. In 2018, Toensing was appointed a Mike Wallace Fellow in Investigative Journalism at the University of Michigan. She is currently a National Geographic Explorer and Fujifilm Creator.