|
At the Institute, I had the privilege of attending multiple webinars and trainings that covered best practices for both. I learned the importance of knowing multiple journalistic formats to help with a possible career transition and that small habits will matter a lot when it comes to training oneself on new technologies and strategies.
In trainings and interviews, I built on my USC education and learned how to best engage with my audience on social media from experts such as Rahim Jessani, founder of Bottom Up Media, and independent journalist Nick Valencia. Jessani taught my peers and me the best practices for vertical video creation and how to monitor and test our content using Instagram and other platforms. I learned from Valencia the importance of posting consistently, even when it feels like no one is watching. Thanks to both, I was able to produce a few videos based on my work for the Institute and begin practicing what I learned.
What matters to journalists today?
A highlight of my internship at the Institute was being able to pitch and write articles for the Institute’s website, including training recaps and content about the news industry itself. While I studied previously published material, I also attended the Institute’s training programs, and wrote articles for NPCJI’s Top Stories, where I gained insight into the issues that matter to journalists today.
I saw what drew the most attention and how many people asked questions at each training — and I gradually learned how best to serve the journalism community with what I was writing. I ended up writing six articles for the website and relished sharing each one with the world.
Reporting with safety and compassion in mind
As someone who loves to find the human angle of every story, I especially appreciated learning to report and gather sources with compassion. As I listened to the Institute’s Public Health Reporting webinars, I gained advice from in-the-field journalists on how best to make sources in communities who are experiencing forms of health trauma or similar issues. I learned to slowly build my network by gaining the trust of one person who can introduce me to others and to explain every step of the reporting process to someone who has little to no experience speaking with the media, which will happen more frequently than I used to think.
Growing up in what I would call a “journalism bubble” formed the conception that many people have met or spoken to a journalist before. I learned that this is not the case, and only about 25% of people have.
I also gained more knowledge and resources when it comes to reporting on traumatic situations and protests. More importantly, I learned more about how to protect myself — both preemptively and in the moment — when reporting in dangerous situations. I will take this advice, including ways to protect my phone from tracking and myself from injury, with me when I go into the field.
Being a resilient journalist — and human
As I enter a job that can be dangerous, both to the physical and mental self, I have equipped myself with resources and knowledge that will help me remain resilient over the course of my career. I received advice from journalists on how to protect my mind as I am surrounded by constant news updates by setting boundaries for myself when possible. As Amanda Seitz of KFF Health News said during one webinar, “As reporters, we think we have to be up to date all the time, but it’s just not physically possible.”
At the Institute, I also learned more about the current job market and just how many people are looking for jobs in the field at any given time. The advice I received and observations I gleaned have made me feel better about where I am as a journalist and what my future may hold, knowing I am equipped with the right tools to report what I see. I’ve learned to repeat my own mantra, “You are where you need to be. Everyone moves differently. Your opportunity will come.”
Taking full advantage of my network
Speaking of the ever-continuing job search, I learned and acted on a very important lesson during my time at the Institute: Building your network is essential to success in many parts of your life, not just your career. For a young journalist like me, I’ve been (correctly) told that a connection at an outlet I’m interested in working for can be the difference between getting a job and being passed over. These connections don’t have to be for an immediate opening or even the outlet they work for; the more people you know, the more connections you can make.
I spent the summer emailing and meeting with journalists in Washington, D.C., (and elsewhere) to foster these connections and build my rolodex of colleagues. They’ve given me advice, connections, and a greater hope for what’s next. In addition to the help they’ve given me with sketching out my career path, they’ve also become a support system — a growing group of cheerleaders who have rejoiced when I email with good news and consoled me when I have less-than-joyous updates. I’ll leave the Institute with not only professional connections but friendly ones.
Final thoughts
During my second-to-last week of the internship, former National Press Club President and current historian Gil Klein visited the Institute and gave us interns one of his famous club tours. At one point, he read a quote by Eric Sevareid enshrined on a plaque outside of the Club ballroom.
“This room really is the sanctum sanctorum of American Journalism, it’s the Westminster Hall, it’s Delphi, the Mecca, the Wailing Wall,” said the former CBS journalist and member of “Murrow Boys.” “Everybody in this country having anything to do with the news business, the only hallowed place I know of that’s absolutely bursting with irreverence…”
Despite being first uttered nearly 50 years ago, Sevareid’s words still ring true. Each time I stepped into the National Press Club, passing artifacts new and old from journalists past and present, I can’t help but feel a sense of awe and privilege that I got to be one of the people entrusted with helping the profession thrive.
| 
