This past week working with Next Generation Radio is an experience I’ll always be grateful for. The majority of my journalism work has been in a school setting, which is very different from what we did this week.
For one, learning about all of the different teams that have worked with us has been one of my favorite aspects of the past couple of days. Seeing the content from each team come together to complete the story feels like discovering the secret behind a magic trick.
As for the responsibilities I had, I impressed myself with how fast I was able to get things done. I remember looking at the schedule on Sunday thinking “is this going to be enough time for everything?!” Having Jes by my side, rallying me on and sharing her knowledge is a huge reason why I was able to get by, and I’m incredibly pleased with the mentorship I received from her.
This week has forced me to start thinking about how I can be a better journalist and storyteller. All of the stories we worked on relied on an interview, and I learned how crucial it is to ask the right follow-up questions. I also learned the importance of having a back-up plan, something I rarely have had to think about up to this point.
To be honest, this week was tough. Of course, it was made so much easier because of the supportive environment. I have never worked on a story this quickly before, let alone had anything to do with a multimedia piece!
Although it was difficult, this experience has made me excited about the potential I have that I didn’t realize existed before. I was pushed out of my comfort zone in all of the right ways and I’m glad that that happened now rather than later!
This reflection is all over the place but so was this week! Not because it felt very unorganized and rushed, but because so much good happened that it’s hard to just touch on a few of those moments. Thank you to the entire team!