Here’s a really great interview http://www.npr.org/2012/02/17/147033362/fresh-air-remembers-war-reporter-anthony-shadid
He’s able to communicate at an emotional level why this kind of work is important. Particularly touching was the moment where the Libyan soldier (on Qaddafi’s side) apologizes to him for tying his hands too tight; as well as when he talks about rebuilding his ancestral home in Lebanon.