By Kayla Williams
Note from Nora: I was lucky enough to have the assistance of high school student intern Kayla Williams on some research during the summer of 2024 on 24 Hours at the Capitol. Here’s a few reflections from her on what it was like to work on this project- and what you can expect from the book!
When I sat down for my first day of work on 24 Hours at the Capitol I felt nervous along with an overwhelming sense of excitement. However, that nervous feeling quickly subsided once I started the job as Nora’s welcoming nature and guidance made my experience so enjoyable. My job was to read various articles about certain aspects of the insurrection and pull quotes or important information that could potentially be incorporated into the book. My first assignment was to conduct research on the Capitol clean-up reports, providing insights centered around the aftermath of the insurrection. This included the damage done to the building and the extensive clean up required by the custodial staff. I read articles and conducted research on the racial double standard towards police officers and the St. John’s Church controversy, along with other aspects related to the insurrection.
I looked forward to working for Nora because she is uniquely positioned to cover the events of the Capitol insurrection due to her background as a CNN producer, allowing her to use her previous experience within the field and apply it to her writing process. Reflecting on her career, she told me that while working for CNN she was constantly covering various breaking news stories at a rigorous pace. This limited her ability to focus and dig deep to uncover more about a story; ultimately leading her to become an author, allowing her to do in depth research on a specific story and provide a more comprehensive view of significant events.
Her first book, 24 Hours in Charlottesville, covered the white nationalist supporters that rallied in Charlottesville, Virgina during 2017, offering detailed insights and first hand accounts from various witnesses and sources. Now, she is working on her next oral history book which will be considered a sequel to her first book due to the various parallels between the events.
To create 24 Hours at the Capitol, Nora researched existing articles and reports. She started her research by gathering as much information on the event as she could, sharing that once she conducted her research she analyzed what information was lacking within the media coverage of the event. Nora interviewed various eye-witnesses, journalists, and photographers about their experiences.
Nora shared that among those she interviewed, she has heard countless stories about being there during the time of the event, saying, “A lot of the people that I’m interviewing were in different parts of the crowd, and even being a couple feet away, had a totally different experience.”
In terms of the challenges faced during the writing process, Nora shared that many who witnessed the insurrection recall it as being a traumatic experience. She pointed out that studies have shown that those who experience a traumatic event have a harder time remembering what happened resulting in a less accurate account of what they witnessed. Nora said that this has made it hard to verify the accuracy of those stories she has heard during interviews with various witnesses. She shared that she has worked to compare eye-witness accounts to published accounts that were recorded after the event to verify the accuracy of various accounts.
When I asked what her readers should take away from the forthcoming book, Nora replied, “I think you should listen to the warnings from people who might know more about a certain threat than you. A lot of activists and a lot of community members were warning people, the government, and the media to take January 6th and the threat of it seriously, and people just didn’t take it very seriously.”
This resulted in the law enforcement being unprepared for the threat in the nation’s capital. Nora says that this is similar to the events that occurred at Charlottesville, as the warnings of both events by activists were disregarded by the public and the police. She hopes that people realize that like Charlottesville, the insurrection was not a spontaneous event that happened out of nowhere. Many rallies and conflicts led up to both and it is important to recognize signs of this in the future, possibly to prevent future insurrections.
The book’s publication date is set to be published on the fifth anniversary of the insurrection in 2026. It will offer readers a new perspective on the event as it sheds light on aspects that tend to be overlooked in the chaos and uncover the details of this traumatic and historic event.
As an intern, I felt so grateful for the opportunity to be a part of this project and contribute to the creation of this book. My experience was eye-opening and allowed me to expand my knowledge on the insurrection, along with the extensive research and hard work that goes into creating a book. In addition to that, I was able to familiarize myself with the work that Nora does and be mentored by someone who has worked in the field I want to pursue, broadcast journalism. Working with Nora was truly an incredible experience and I cannot wait for everyone to read what I know will be an amazing book.
