The past few days have felt like weeks:
not in a negative sense, but because we have been unbelievably productive, and
have made an effort to maintain our spirits awake and aware in order to fully
grasp every meaningful moment in the program. I enjoyed meeting amazing people
from different states, since I rarely get to meet such friendly and relatable
people who stand their grounds passionately and yet are open to discussion and
to sharing new ideas.
One of the highlights of the program was
the breaking news workshop by CNN producer Brian Rokus. He was one of the most
energetic and hilarious people I’ve ever met, and he unfailingly transmits his
energy whether you try to soak in it or not.
He also discarded the narrow view of
journalism I held for a long time. Journalism is stereotypically portrayed as a
boring office job with personal opinions disguised as newsworthy stories.
However, I have never seen someone as excited about their job as he is,
especially due to the exposure he’s had abroad. He gave us insight into some of
the stories he has covered, such as 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina, and
he discussed the inconveniences and challenges he has faced along the way while
covering stories of that magnitude.
I’ve also learned that broadcast
journalism is not only about catastrophic events, even though it is usually
interpreted that way. Rather, it is more about humanizing stories in order to
show people that there are issues out there that need to be addressed. Although
broadcast journalism is not my specific area of interest, Rokus’ enthusiasm
inspires me to at least consider it, and also encourages me to work on my
communication skills, which are vital regardless of what career I decide to
pursue.
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