The Outlaw Ocean | Ian Urbina | Talks at Google

TL;DR

Ian Urbina’s The Outlaw Ocean examines crime and harmful behavior in international waters through human, labor, and human-rights stories, with environmental damage as a secondary focus. Urbina argues that much of the ocean is ungoverned or ungovernable even though water covers two-thirds of the planet and 90% of what people consume arrives by sea. Read on to understand his reporting strategy, story selection, and ship-centered approach.

Transcript

IAN URBINA: So my name is Ian Urbina. I'm a reporter at "The Times," have been there since 2003. And I do investigative projects. And that was always sort of my dream when I joined the paper, and have been doing that for about five, six years. And essentially what that means is I have the luxury of time with stories. So I'm not a beat reporter and ... Read More

Key Insights

• 🤢 The lawlessness of the high seas allows crimes and abuses to go unchecked, with little to no consequences for the perpetrators.
• 🤢 The high seas are an essential space for global commerce, but they are also vulnerable to exploitation and environmental degradation.
• 🤢 Law enforcement at sea is challenging due to the vastness of the area, the lack of resources, and the varying responses of governments.

Questions & Answers

Q: What is Ian Urbina’s The Outlaw Ocean about?

The project investigates the range of bad behavior and crime occurring at sea. Urbina approaches the ocean primarily through human, labor, and human-rights stories, while also examining how the marine realm is being depleted and despoiled.

Q: Why does Ian Urbina describe the high seas as a lawless space?

Urbina says much of the space covered by water is ungoverned and ungovernable. He also characterizes international waters as a commons that belongs to everyone and no one, making it an important setting for investigating misconduct.

Q: Why do the oceans matter to everyday life?

Urbina says that 90% of everything people consume comes by way of the sea. He also states that 50% of the oxygen people breathe comes by way of the sea, underscoring the ocean’s global importance.

Q: How did Ian Urbina choose the focus of his ocean investigation?

His initial proposal was to take readers into a place they probably had never visited and report what happens there. The concept then became more specific, focusing on the range of bad behavior and crime occurring at sea.

Q: Why did The Outlaw Ocean emphasize people rather than fish?

Urbina’s editor, Rebecca Corvett, wanted the series to avoid treating the ocean only as an environmental subject. She encouraged him to begin with human, labor, and human-rights stories, then address environmental depletion and damage secondarily.

Q: How does Ian Urbina describe his investigative reporting process?

As an investigative reporter, Urbina has more time than a daily beat reporter to develop stories. In return, his work is expected to bring a new angle or previously undisclosed information, along with greater rigor and polish.

Q: Why was The Outlaw Ocean difficult to launch?

Urbina had pitched the idea several times before it was accepted. He says the reporting would be extremely expensive and sometimes dangerous, which had caused previous editors to reject or question the proposal.

Q: How did Ian Urbina structure the opening story of the series?

He wanted the first story to establish the scope and authority of the larger series. Instead of making a person the main character, he chose a well-documented repeat-offender ship and planned to follow it around the planet as it engaged in misconduct.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Investigative journalist Ian Urbina talks about his work as a reporter for The New York Times and his series on the lawlessness of the high seas.

• Urbina explains that his goal is to shed light on the crimes and abuses that happen at sea, including environmental crimes, human rights violations, and violence.

• He discusses specific stories he covered, such as the longest chase in nautical history and the issue of sea slavery, to highlight the severity of the problems.