Week One!!!

As far as internships go, the first week was fairly typical. The tour of the station, all the ins and outs and alleyways, the people you’ll see on a regular basis, what to touch and what is legally off limits, who you want to talk to…and who you don’t.

The thing about news is, you have to jump in. If the phone rings, answer it; it’s all trial and error at this point. Here’s what I tell myself, “you will screw up, so do it now while it’s still ‘ok’.” But you have to be willing to try. No one wants a lazy intern and I’m here to impress these people so they’ll say nice things about me. Really. I’m being honest here. This is my dream profession. If I develop a bad reputation, I can kiss that dream goodbye.

My coordinator, Pete, is really cool; very helpful and very friendly. He seems invested in giving me a strong learning opportunity, encompassing all the aspects of the trade. This is great. This is exactly what I want to do. I want to learn EVERYTHING. I’ve already dubbed tapes, arranged interviews and answered phones, among other things. Even the directors and producers have been helpful and educating. They don’t have to explain things to me, let me watch what they do behind the scenes, or fill me in on details, but they do.

So far, so good. But, it’s only been one week.

I’m very excited to wake up with a known destination those internship mornings. It may be silly, but I sit in the nucleus of news; where tips are given, stories are born, and history is made. There are only cameras and screens between me and the populace. It really doesn’t get more exciting than that. For a few fleeting moments each week, I’m living my dream.