C of C professor in Georgia during attacks

Barrett

When Joyce Barrett lectures her College of Charleston students about taking chances in life and seeing the world, she speaks from experience as a veteran journalist and globe-trotting advocate for free speech.

She was in the Republic of Georgia last week when the country's long simmering dispute with neighboring Russia escalated into armed conflict.

As Russian planes flew overhead and bombs struck targets outside the Georgian capital of Tbilisi, Barrett evacuated to neighboring Armenia. She spoke with The Post and Courier by phone Tuesday from her hotel in the Armenian capital of Yeravan, as Russian and Georgian leaders worked toward a cease-fire.

Barrett was expected to return to South Carolina today. She'll barely have time to unpack before resuming her four-course adjunct teaching duties in the college's Department of Communication.

"I inflict a lot of my travel stories on them," she said of her students. "I don't want them to settle on some PR or newspaper job and think that they have made it. I want them to go out and change the world."

Barrett, 55, had been in Georgia since July 19 to consult with the country's government and media as part of a grant funded by the U.S. Department of State-sponsored International Research & Exchanges Board.

She had already logged dozens of interviews with local journalists and Georgian officials and was preparing to write her report Friday when the Russian military crossed into Georgia with tanks. "It was really bad," said Barrett, a grandmother. "I really felt like I was waiting on bombs to drop."

That's when her journalistic instincts kicked in. She e-mailed friends at The New York Times and Washington Post and offered her stringing services. The Washington Post called back at 2 a.m. needing confirmation about whether the bombing had reached the capital. Barrett called a local government minister who was still awake. The official said the attacks were still outside the city, and Barrett fed the comment to the newspaper.

Back in Charleston, her husband of 25 years, Bill Marjenhoff, grew concerned. Though he knew better than to ask his adventure-craving wife to leave in the midst of breaking international news. "I worry about her, but she is an extremely courageous woman."

Over the weekend, as the conflict spread further into Georgia, Barrett and her colleagues decided she should leave. On Sunday, she set out with hundreds of refugees to cross the border into Armenia.

A seasoned print reporter who has worked for several newspapers, Barrett scribbled notes as she made the two-hour drive.

She later wrote in a Women's Wear Daily blog about the contrast between Georgian soldiers toting machine guns and the picturesque countryside covered in grapes and sunflowers.

Barrett has studied and taught journalism around the world. The trip to Georgia was her third.

As it turned out, the military conflict added an unexpected dimension to Barrett's findings about media and government in the young democracy, particularly after Georgia President Mikheil Saakashvili reportedly blocked access to Russian Web sites and television.

But she gave Saakashvili high marks for his media savvy. He's been a staple on CNN and BBC since the outbreak of violence, while Russian leaders floundered amid rebukes from the U.S. and other countries.

Barrett intends to share her latest experience in the classroom. At least until her next adventure: She plans to teach reporters and government officials in Iraq.

Reach Ron Menchaca at rmenchaca@postandcourier.com or 937-5724.