East West - The Asian American Lifestyle Magazine

by Sonu Munshi

Veteran ABC News producer Vinnie Malhotra found himself becoming part of the story in January 2006 when a tank he was traveling in was attacked near Taji, Iraq. Malhotra was not hurt, but former ABC World News Tonight co-anchor, Bob Woodruff, and cameraman Doug Vogt were severely injured when an improvised explosive device (IED) hit their tank.

With the recent publication of Lee and Bob Woodruff’s memoir, “In an Instant: A Family’s Journey of Love and Healing,” Malhotra has found himself back in the spotlight.

For Malhotra, a four-time Emmy winner, that instant made him rethink his life and work. These days, instead of risking his life for a story he is now a senior producer for “Nightline.” The 32-year-old New Jersey-born Indian American, who joined ABC in 1997 after graduating from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst with a degree in political science and communications, spoke to East West about “his war to cover,” the stories and places that mean the most to him and the thing that he least expected—appearing on Oprah.

Take us back to Jan. 29, 2006, leading up to the attack.

There were four of us – Bob [Woodruff], Doug [Vogt], me and the sound man, Magnus Macedo. We were embedded with the U.S. Army’s 4th Infantry Division. Leading up to the State of the Union address, Bob wanted to spend time with Iraqi troops being trained to take over military responsibilities. On Sunday, we had gone out with a group of soldiers from the 4th Infantry Division in Taji, which is 15 kilometers north of Baghdad. Bob wanted to do a stand-up [speaking directly to a camera] riding on the tank. But as we started to roll, it wasn’t working out as the tank was too loud. Magnus and I were in the base of the tank and Doug was perched on top of the tank. Bob stood with his waist exposed. Just then, an IED went off.

I let out a scream as I saw Bob crumble back into the tank, his face covered in blood. My immediate reaction was that he had been killed. I grabbed him by his flak jacket. Amidst the gunfire I screamed at Bob to wake up. I saw a big hole in his neck and I realized I needed to snap out of it. Then I put my hand on his neck to stop the blood oozing out. Eventually the gunfire stopped. We pulled Bob out of the tank and put him on a stretcher. I told him to hang in there. He asked me, “Am I alive?” I said, “Yes.”

I told him we’d been in a bad accident and that he’d be OK. I sensed how with just the snap of a finger, mine and other people’s lives had been turned upside down.

How did your family find out?

Right after the attack, I told a producer in our Baghdad bureau about what had just happened. He asked me if he should call my parents. I said OK. It was around 5 a.m. when he called my parents and said, ‘Before I say anything, your son is OK, but his colleagues have been badly injured.’ Hours later I called them using a satellite phone. They were really concerned about Bob.

Were your parents OK with you covering a war zone?

My mother never wanted me to go--as for her it’s difficult to see me go to all these places. In fact, I saw how that attack affected my family. I realized I’ve had enough close calls and that maybe it’s time to step back. So I have decided to stay away from conflict zones for now and am now with “Nightline” in more of a managing editor kind of position. I’m now sending people to do what I was previously covering.

What’s the move been like for you?

It’s been a tough transition. If there’s something going on in, say, Gaza, I itch to pack my bags and head to the airport. But I’ve come to see what I’ve been missing too—the stability.

How has all of the media attention been?

Odd; surreal actually to be on Oprah. I most certainly never expected that. Or, to be mentioned on the David Letterman show when Woodruff appeared as a guest. I’ve spent the past decade getting other people to tell me the story. To see myself on camera is an odd turn of events. I’m kind of glad it’s over.

What does covering the Iraq war mean to you?

This was my war to cover. Journalists have covered Vietnam or Somalia and they identify themselves with specific conflicts. For me, it’s a historical time and I felt privileged to cover Iraq from the beginning, to be able to cover all the milestones. By the third time, I was with Peter Jennings. We had access at the highest levels right up to the prime minister. It was incredible. We got Peter into the courtroom when the Saddam Hussein trial took place, and during the handover of power, we were in the room. I used to refer to it as “my war to cover.” It’s such a responsibility that comes from the position. You realize millions of people are watching that piece you present in the news. What you report is going to influence people, and people rely on you. You are their eyes and ears. It’s a responsibility and an honor.

What drew you to journalism?

I was the op-ed section editor of my high school newspaper. My parents knew my interest in journalism early on and they encouraged it. Most Indian kids are expected to pursue medicine, engineering or law. My brother was a lawyer and is now a lobbyist for the American Civil Liberties Union. Growing up, we talked about the conflict in Kashmir in my house a lot. Learning and knowing about that conflict kind of got me into journalism. I’ve been lucky to have seen the [India-Pakistan] border, the Line of Control, from both sides. The understanding of what happened there and spending time with the Indian military and the Pakistani military got me more interested in conflicts. Later, traveling with Peter Jennings was like having a “professor” about the Middle East conflict. That developed into a much larger drive to cover war zones. My father’s the happiest man, as he wanted to be a lawyer or journalist.

How did you get your first break?

I was a desk assistant in the New York office at ABC and then moved to the Washington bureau as a production associate and off-air reporter right around the time the Monica Lewinsky scandal happened. I remember covering Ken Starr and all those players in the Clinton soap opera. I referred to myself as part of the Washington paparazzi.

What was your first major assignment?

I spent a lot of time in Pakistan and Afghanistan right after Sept. 11, 2001. I went to Islamabad as a producer, where I worked with Woodruff. What helped me get that assignment in Pakistan was my being functional in Hindi. I could navigate my way through taxis and was able to cover demonstrations. For American journalists, it was a difficult place to cover because of the language barrier. I had a sense of the culture and language.

Is there any story that is particularly close to your heart?

I went to Iraq in December 2005 with [ABC anchor] Elizabeth Vargas and we found a ballet school in the middle of the chaos of war. People were getting killed all around, but this ballet teacher continued to teach her class, which had been reduced to just nine students. Their parents went out of the way to send their children to this oasis for one hour every week. There was such poetry to that story; it warmed your heart. You can’t imagine the flood of phone calls we got from people wanting to help these kids after that story aired.

Any eye-opening moments?

Post-9/11 Afghanistan was the best assignment I had. Ever since, I’ve been enamored by Afghan culture. That country feels like it’s untouched, almost like from another century. Sure there’s the Taliban and the war, but the average Afghan is so pure. They live by honor and pride. You would visit a family that was obviously poor and immediately they’d offer tea and even if it was the last piece of bread, they’d offer it. That just blew me away.

Is there any issue or place you still haven’t covered and want to?

We don’t cover Africa. It’s such a huge part of this world. I wanted to spend time in Africa and once went on my own for four weeks in April 2001 to Kenya, Tanzania and Zanzibar. I’m intrigued by this continent—its history, the stories and the culture. Being a student of turmoil, I arrived in Nairobi and visited the site of the 1998 U.S. Embassy bombing. The thing about Africa is you can show up in any country there and be wowed. Only two places in the world where you get that feel are Afghanistan and the African continent.

Are you in touch with India?

I was born and raised in Cherry Hill, N.J. My father came to the United States in the late ‘60s for the graduate program in engineering at Kansas State University. Then my mom came and they moved to New Jersey. Both my brother and I as kids spent summer breaks in India. It was important for my parents that their children stay in touch with their extended family and Indian culture. I really enjoyed it. It was so much fun meeting family. And the neighborhood I grew up in had kids from a similar background.

On being Indian American:

Somebody said once, “you walk into your house and it’s India, you walk out and it’s America.” You go to soccer practice, you’re in America; you go home and you’re back in India. Growing up is tough enough. Adding this to the equation is a delicate balance. I’ve been lucky to have straddled both aspects decently. But it’s hard.

How would you say newsrooms fare in terms of diversity?

I would say that by and large it’s still a predominantly white newsroom. There are very few Indians, or South Asians, for that matter, in network news. There are South Asian journalists like Rajeev Chandrasekher or Somini Sengupta, but in terms of network news producers, I personally know of only a few Indians. I would love to see more Asians in the news business. I would love to see more Indians and Asians in the news business. There aren’t many minority producers in senior ranks.