New York Times Associate Producer Vishakha Darbha on Breaking into the Media Industry and Video Storytelling

“When I was 9, I was asked to write a fantasy story for a creative writing assignment. My teacher scribbled a note in the margins; “You have a gift. Don’t give up on it.” Today’s woman dreamer, Vishakha Darbha is an Associate Audio Producer at the New York Times, where she worked on their flagship podcast, “The Argument”. A multi-media journalist inspired by the conversations around her, Vishakha brings her creative voice to the journalism world in exciting projects such as “Comedy in Quarantine”. A must-read piece for aspiring journalists -she shares her career journey , and the expectations vs. reality in a media career!

1) You are an associate  producer at the New York Times, and have had quite a career in the media industry. Tell us your story; How did you find your passion for storytelling and creating content? 

When I was 9, I was asked to write a fantasy story for a creative writing assignment. After reading my story about an ice queen and her human friend, my teacher scribbled a note in the margins; “You have a gift. Don’t give up on it.” While I don’t remember a word of that story, that note remains in my memory. Her words inspired me enough to decide right then that I wanted to be a storyteller, and five years later, when I began high school, I decided journalism would be my medium to tell stories. 

Now, almost fifteen years later, I’m glad I stuck to that dream. I have changed mediums multiple times — from writing to video to graphics and now audio — but at the core of my passion lies the need to tell a good story.

2) How do you find inspiration for the content you create? What are the qualities that make a good story/video resonate with the audience? 

I don’t think there is one answer for what inspires my pitches. A lot of my work is related to the news, so I derive some inspiration from consuming media on various news websites, including social media. A big part of my current job requires me to pick up on the big stories that have national and international consequences, and work on subjects inspired by those topics. For example, the current coronavirus pandemic has inspired a range of stories, from ICU delirium, to vaccine mandates. 

I also get inspired by conversations I have with people around me. You’re curious about how much flying contributes to climate change? Well, so am I. Then I read up and see if there’s a surprising element to something people know to be general knowledge. And somehow, there almost always is. 

3) You have put together some amazing pieces, particularly The Power of Comedy During Quarantine. At the Times, you are focused on a series, The Argument, and their podcast series, Sway. Tell us about these projects? What is your favorite project you have worked on thus far?  

I feel like I have lived many different lives. When I started out in journalism, I was covering politics and breaking news. Then I shifted to environmental stories, and now I’d say I work on more general interest, genre-spanning work. 

Comedy in Quarantine came about as a combined project between me and a former colleague, now good friend and established filmmaker. The pandemic had just taken hold in the U.S., and we had all shifted to working from home. A part of the struggle was figuring out how to tell stories via video when you weren’t sure if it was safe to leave the house. The only example we had was China, where people had already experienced lockdown. So we started reading up about how they were coping, and stumbled across the comedian featured in the documentary. In many ways, that’s how a lot of my stories pan out. I have an itch about something I read, or experienced, and I just want to know more about it.

Currently, my main focus is producing The Argument, which is a debate show with a host and two other guests, usually with opposing viewpoints. I was pulled onto the show to revamp it, and now it’s gone from a podcast about U.S. politics to pretty much any topic under the sun. Humans are highly opinionated, so that makes this a really entertaining and interesting show to work on. I’ve learnt so much about the world and how people think.

The best thing about my job is the fact that I turn into a researcher for every project I am on. For example, I know a lot about lead pipe poisoning in the midwest, as well as why Americans love stories about serial killers. It’s also been quite a journey, moving from one medium to another, which makes it harder to answer the second part of this question. I have many favorites, but if I really had to choose, I’d say the documentary on ICU delirium, as difficult as it was to work on, was also highly informative, collaborative, and some of my best work during a very stressful time.

4) Getting into the media and journalism field is quite challenging these days, and becoming more and more competitive. What has that experience been like, working in this industry? What were some challenges you and creators around you have faced? 

Being on a visa while also trying to break into the media industry in the U.S. has been quite a roller coaster. Honestly, there are days when I’m really happy I get to be doing what I thought I’d be doing when I was younger, and then there are other days when I just want to quit and do something else with my life. A big part of this has just been how unstable this profession is. 

The pandemic was a particularly difficult period. In May last year, my entire team and I were let go from The Atlantic. It was devastating, as I don’t think most of us were assuming that every single person, from our manager to the fellow, would be without a job. Personally, I kicked into adrenaline mode. It wasn’t just about losing a job, it felt a lot more personal as I was also trying to figure out how to hold on to my visa status. I didn’t give myself even a day to process. I think within the next two days, I’d sent about 25 emails, reaching out to pretty much everyone I knew in the industry to see if they had any leads. 

I am one of the fortunate ones. I found a job — a great one at that — within two months. But the experience has had its repercussions. Since I hadn’t let myself process anything, I would catch myself crying or panicking a couple of months later, as it would’ve just registered that I’d lost my job a few months ago. 

I talk to my media friends and colleagues a lot about the toll this industry takes on you. Sometimes, particularly during the pandemic, you’re not just reporting the story. You’re living the story. And that makes the job that much harder. Not to mention long hours, bad pay, particularly if you’re a woman and/or a person of color. Advocating for ourselves has been a constant lesson, and I am grateful for the people I have in my life who have taken the time to guide me through this profession and stand by my side when things get bad. I hope to be able to do the same for my peers and for the next generation. 

5) As the platform for women dreamers, what is your next big dream? 

I want to direct a film! I want to write a book! I want to run a documentary series — video or audio!
I have a lot of big dreams for my career. The way I look at it, 14-year-old me had a big dream that she worked towards, so I don’t see why I should stop dreaming at 28. 

I think everyone, particularly women, should dream big and dream bold. Not everything is achievable, as most of us realize along the way. But the way I look at it, at least when you look back at your life, you can’t say you didn’t give it your best shot. 

Thank you Vishakha for sharing your story with us! We are excited to have you in our empowered women’s network!

Bio: Vishakha Darbha is a multimedia journalist specialized in audio, video and motion graphics. Currently, she is an associate audio producer on the New York Times Opinion audio team, where she works on their flagship podcast, The Argument. Prior to that, she was a video and motion graphics producer at The Atlantic, where she worked on two series that included collaborations with writers across the newsroom. Outside of work, Vishakha likes to spend time hiking, reading, singing and making origami animals. She also produces and hosts an independent podcast, “You’ve Got It Made,” which traces the history of the Indian diaspora in the United States,, is the Creative Director for a South Asian Anthology, and is currently a faculty member on AAJA Voices.