In May, I was awarded the Jean Stephens Sacramento Press Club Scholarship which, in turn, facilitated my summer internship at The Sacramento Bee. My ten week internship instantly proved to be professional, fast-paced, engaging, and challenging.
The Sac Bee’s seasoned reporters and editors breed a newsroom environment of immense wit, insight, and intelligence – alongside a constant sense of urgency. Every day at The Bee comes with a surge of thrilling deadline-induced adrenaline. My first day, I found myself tossed into the mix and quickly realized the lofty expectations that came with being a Sac Bee intern. I am constantly motivated to push myself to my maximum potential and driven to deliver my most accurate and refined reporting.
While at The Bee, I covered a broad spectrum of stories from wildfires to food, City Hall to transportation, drownings to business. I gained daily news and features reporting experience, with numerous opportunities to go into the field. Most memorably, I covered the opening of an Elk Grove transition house for the homeless – a demographic particularly close to my heart – and experienced the endless gratitude of those served. On a weekend shift, I was sent to the river to produce a video in response to river drownings, which yielded both humorous and insightful content.
I gained photography, video reporting and editing skills to produce several media packages. Sac Bee legends – editorial cartoonist Jack Ohman, executive editor Joyce Terhaar, managing editor Scott Lebar, to name a few – offered personal insight and career advice to the interns. Perhaps most valuably, I was treated as a professional and provided the resources required to perform at a truly professional level.
Photo: In the field covering The Wragg Fire in July
If you or your company is interested in supporting Journalism scholarships, consider becoming a Press Club 50 member. For more information, visit http://sacpressclub.org/press-club-50/