Trafficked Underworlds: The low-down on what to expect
The world-renowned, Peabody and DuPont Award-winning investigative journalist, Mariana van Zeller, was bitten by the journalism bug at the young age of 12. She was the only Portuguese journalist at 9/11, which is where everything changed for her. In a media briefing about the fourth season of National Geographic’s series, Trafficked, she says that she wanted to do reporting to understand why these things happen. She realised that there is a whole world out there that we don’t know about. In fact, half of the world’s economy is the black market, and we know almost nothing about it.
Rejection is Real in Trafficked Underworlds
Working in various different environments, Mariana says it’s difficult to prepare for what might happen and how an interview will go down. She has always loved travelling, but getting the people she is travelling to, to trust her, is a whole other ball game. “Particularly when you’re working on black markets. I’ve become very used to being rejected as a journalist.”
Mariana always makes it clear to the people she wants to interview, that she is not there to judge, but to try and understand why they do what they do. “People want to share their stories. They know they are seen as the bad guy, but here they are given the opportunity to tell their story behind a mask.”
She believes many of these people appreciate the fact that she is trying to understand, which is why many of them say yes to the interviews. Still, she has spent days waiting for people to pitch for interviews. In fact, she’s travelled across half the world only to find that her interviewee did not pitch.
Evidently, lots of planning, training and security meetings take place before Mariana and her team get going. The behind-the-scenes are almost more important than the in-the-field.
“We don’t go to places unannounced,” she says. According to her, there are months and months of pre-productions. For her, it is very important to make the people she wants to interview, feel safe and unexposed and she is very serious about protecting her sources.
Half of her time is mainly spent on proving that she is actually a journalist, and that she is there to understand, and nothing more.
Face to Face with the Players
The question on everyone’s minds is: How does she get them to sit down and do an actual face-to-face interview? Mariana says she and her team rely heavily on local journalists. They are the unsung heroes of the work that they do.
The first episode of Trafficked Underworlds was shot in South Africa and here, they relied on a journalist who opened many doors to what they had to work with. Mariana says there is a lot of ego involved in the business of black markets. “Many of these guys’ families don’t even know what they are doing.”
Mariana had a chilling interview with a contract killer after her research showed that assassination numbers in South Africa were concerningly high. “We’re talking about 1000 people having died at the hands of assassins in the past seven years,” she says. She even got to interview Bheki Cele, Minister of Police of South Africa, who admits that he knows there is a breakdown in the system.
It’s her eye-opening and terrifying interview with Jojo (not his real name) – a South African hitman – that hit us straight in the stomach, though.
Mariana says: “In many of these black markets, it is the system that is broken, not the people.” That gives her (and us) a glimpse of optimism.
Picking a Place for Interviewing an Assassin
The places for her interviews are usually quite desolate and mostly picked by the people they talk to. It’s often far away from their homes, where they feel comfortable and safe. Also, nighttime is easier for them to come in without being seen.
The norm for these interviews is no security as they are trying to get people to trust them, and it takes months and months before they are even able to turn on the cameras. The team is usually no more than six people, plus the local journalist. There would usually be four or five in the room for the interview, keeping it less intimidating. “I want people to feel as comfortable as possible,” Mariana says.
The Workings Between Reporters and the Law
Mariana explains that there is a healthy separation between reporters and the law. She says that instead of arresting one person, perhaps it is better to combat these black markets by understanding why these things happen. As a journalist, “it’s your job to raise awareness more than anything.” There are lines, she says, though. If they know there are people in danger (or even animals), that immediately changes the situation.
Managing Mental Health
One can only imagine the anxiety that comes from such intense interviews. When asked about how she takes care of her mental health, Mariana says they have a rule in the field that they must take time to talk about what happened during the day. It serves as a little therapy session, as well as a bonding moment. They almost became like family while shooting and she emphasises that “it’s very important to enjoy the people you’re travelling with, and to talk about what happened.”
Further to that, there is just something about running which she finds incredibly therapeutic.
It’s Not All Black and White
Mariana is very driven about the work that she does. She doesn’t see the world as black and white, but rather as broken systems and good people (mostly) who act out due to the systems.
Ultimately, human connection is very important. “We’re not chasing adrenaline. All of it is fuelled by the passion for what I do. I see myself as incredibly privileged to be able to gain access to these secret worlds,” she says.
Trafficked Underworlds premieres on National Geographic (DStv 181, Starsat 220) on 23 May 2024 and if you’re curious about all things assassins, sextortion, the selling of body parts, black market meds, the illegal trade of apes, migrant smugglers, hash smugglers, illegal gambling and drug mule scams, you’d better mark Thursdays, 21:00 in your calendar.
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