For my first week in Nashville, I stayed with a reporter at the paper, and his wife, and most importantly their fantastic dog Riviera. It was really interesting to try and navigate living with a coworker, but all in all he gave me some really fantastic advice on how to impress my editor on the first day: come in with plenty of story ideas, enthusiasm, and motivation. On to the first day!
On my first day at work I took all of Tony's advice, and now my editor and I are really close. She's so fantastic and I am working on a lot of crazy projects, which I'll share with you.
First off, I got published three times last week for two articles I wrote while working the Country Music Fest downtown, and then another about a really amazing girl empowerment theater group in Nashville. Check those stories out here:
http://www.tennessean.com/search/paige%20pfleger/
Yesterday, I got to interview Good Morning America host Robin Roberts. She's coming to visit Nashville to talk about her newest book. She was seriously lovely, and gave me a lot of advice about journalism after our phone conversation. I'm also working on a piece for the Family section (a lead, to be precise, which means it will be the largest story in the section!) about junior roller derby girls and their moms. I went to the State Fairgrounds yesterday to do some reporting on that.
Then, by far the craziest piece I am working on is about a man here in Nashville called Twerk Master Jay - he is going into his senior year of college at Middle Tennessee State University, and just opened up his own workout studio that specializes in dance fitness and twerking. I went to do an interview and to watch a class, and it was seriously amazing. Plus, he made me participate. I'm still sore. I think after I write the story I'll probably go to a few of the classes, because it was just too fun! Here's Twerk Master Jay and I:
As far as dress code goes, we dress pretty business-like. More so than I had expected, but it's gotten a lot less strict because the AC in our building is at 60 degrees and everyone is freezing to death, so no one is really too concerned about how they look right now. The feature section I'm writing for is mostly ladies, which makes for a really nice working environment. Everyone is super friendly and welcoming, and I'm always happy to come into work.
Nashville is a really amazing city, and I can't wait to continue exploring it over the course of the summer! Thanks for reading!
-Paige
Hi Paige! Wow, I am so impressed by how much you have accomplished in just one week at your internship! From already getting your own work published to interviewing Robin Roberts, it sounds you'll gain lots of hands-on experience this summer. Do you get to choose your stories and/or interviews or are they assigned to you? Do you only do your own reporting or does some of your job include assisting staff reporters?
ReplyDeleteNatalie,
ReplyDeleteMostly we get to pick our own stories, but sometimes we get them assigned to us. I usually am balancing working on a larger story of my choosing with working on a few small briefs that I have to contribute. Robin Roberts was actually assigned to me, crazy enough. My adviser went to Bonnaroo so I had to take on some of her stories, and Robin Roberts was one of them!
Paige, your internship seems amazing! It appears as if your off to a great and exciting start so far, after that very long drive to Nashville. Interviewing Robin Roberts sounds incredible, especially since she's usually the one doing the interviews! Were you given interview questions beforehand, or did you have to come up with them yourself? Enjoy the rest of your internship!
ReplyDeletePaige-- that's amazing to get to interview Robin Roberts. Also, congrats on getting two articles published your first week!
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