Posts Tagged Kentucky New Era
Why hello there, Union County.
Posted by Emily in Journalism 101, Spilled Thoughts on June 3, 2010
What my planner looked like my first 3 days of my internship
If you want to find me this summer, you are going to have to look.
Most consider where I live, Webster County or outside of the small town of Dixon, Ky. to be “in the boondocks.” (Don’t bother looking on a map if you don’t know where that is, because it won’t be on there.) But outside of Webster, even further into the country, about 15 miles Northwest, you’ll hit a town called Morganfield.
And sure enough, that’s where I’ll be.
Last winter in the midst of a hunt for a summer internship, I received an e-mail from the editor of the Union County Advocate, Carrie Dillard, requesting me for an interview. After a few phonecalls, a trip to Union County and some conversation about where I wanted to spend my summer, I accepted the job.
Sure its roughly a 35 minute drive for me everyday, a smaller community newspaper, but I’ve never been more sure this is where I need to be.
My first day of work, I was sent to the Feed Mill Restaurant to cover a story on the Red Hat Ladies. The next I interviewed a pastor and his wife at First United Methodist Church. Then that Saturday night, I was thrown head first into Union County High School’s graduation. All in three days. All too much fun. All amazing experience for a hungry little intern.
I was especially nervous about my first day of work at the Advocate. Why?
Because when I got the job, I was told I would be doing it all. I would be reporting, writing, taking pictures, designing, working in an office and whatever else we all stumbled across together. And so far, I’ve been doing just that.
Another hurdle I feared was saying goodbye to sports writing and hello to news writing. Something I feared I would hate, but surprisingly I have loved it.
Like the Kentucky New Era, this newspaper is a real paper. Its real people trying to make real money. Its a paper that people read cover to cover. And what I’m discovering slowly is that this is a paper that is a huge part of the community.
While I know most of my journalism classmates at Western Kentucky University frowned on the thought of interning at a weekly newspaper, I know that this weekly has been a perfect fit for me. I’m learning what community journalism is all about. I’m learning how to find the soul of a place, how to understand people and how to tell stories.
I believe internships are more much than simply a summer job. To me, internships are a way to connect you to other people in the business that maybe you wouldn’t have known. Internships are a way to get that real hands-on experience. You learn if this is for you, or maybe another path is more suitable. You learn if you can handle it.
Yesterday, I celebrated my bylines with friends and family and read over my stories at least ten times to myself.
Its good to know that I’m right where I need to be.
Keep up with how I’m doing at the Advocate by clicking here.
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My Balancing Act
Posted by Emily in Spilled Thoughts on September 9, 2009
It’s time for you to prove,
Within your ruby shoes,
You deserve a smile with no regret,
Look at you kicking off your shoes,
Dancing for the world to see,
Now open up and see, And go be free and fly away…
I probably do not know what I am getting myself into honestly. This whole college experience journalism thing? Yeah, who was I kidding?
I thought for a few minutes there I had this whole college thing down. Freshmen year was knocked out of the park and my summer living on my own in Bowling Green was a complete success. I had figured out where the bathrooms are in all the buildings on campus, found the quickest way to master the hill from my residence hall to TCCW, and even seemed to say, “Meal Plan” with such confidence I appeared to be saying it for years.
But I guess it serves me right for thinking I had it all figured out. And how intelligent am I for thinking 15 hours of classes and working part-time at the university was just not enough?
Now here I am working to perfect that amazing balancing act I have going with class/work, (all on my head of course), putting my fancy journalism major to good use as I freelance for the Kentucky New Era and work as the newest College Heights Herald’s sports general assignment reporter.
With my fancy voice recorder in hand, pen working furiously, questions buzzing in my head, I have never done anything more exciting than the work of a journalist. From the few stories I have been involved with thus far in my brief career, I can say I have learned more from those experiences than from hours and hours in a classroom. Suddenly this whole journalism thing I have been studying for the past year has become a beautiful and real thing to me. Beautiful. Yes. Real. YES. But I refuse to sugarcoat this for you, because honestly I feel like as I am seeking truth and answers to my many questions about the industry, you are probably on the same scavenger hunt.
I’ll give it to you straight: Its not easy. Deadlines are a constant. If you think you have some time, well you are wrong. If you think an interview will go smoothly when you are crunched for time, well you are wrong. You always need more information. You always could have done more research. Each day, I feel like I have no idea what I am doing. I feel like I have everything to learn and no one is just going to pass out the answers to the test. But maybe that’s the process. Maybe its better to start out brand new, so that you can dig deeper and seek a little harder. Maybe everyone has to start at the bottom to make reaching the peak so breathtaking.
While what I do know is little, what I have learned in the past few weeks speaks volumes. This experience I am gaining right now is vital after the next few years of college pass. I am so thankful to be surrounded by amazing people, who will go to many vast places in this huge world and will inspire me to do the same. My high stress level is worth every minute.
I do not have everything figured out. Fifty years from now, I probably still will not have it all figured out. But I have never have I anticipated the small discoveries along the way more.
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