EDITORS' NOTE: Caitlin Tremblay, a journalism student at the University at Buffalo, ends her summer internship with us today. At our request, she wrote this blog entry about her experiences.
I’ll be honest, when I first walked into the Gazette office in May I was terrified.
I’m a nervous person in general but walking into a room full of professional journalists really threw me for a loop. Would they like me? Would I be able to hold my own? It’s scary to sit down at a cluster of desks surrounded by people who have the kind of job that you strive to obtain post-graduation.
My first day it took me 6 hours to write a paragraph about a rail yard accident because I was so nervous about getting every last detail right. I must have checked even the most minuscule details four or five times.
I went to bed that night and had a terrible nightmare. I dreamt that I accidentally misquoted a source and it led to a Stephen Glass-caliber crackdown. I woke up in a cold sweat and unable to go back to sleep. Was I in over my head?
The next day got better and the day after that even more so. I began to lose my nervousness and insecurities and write more stories. I began to get to know many of the Gazette staff members and develop relationships with them. In all honesty, I learned more in my three months at The Gazette than I did in any of the journalism classes I’ve taken at school.
I learned the power of persistence from Mike Lamendola and Justin Mason. If you make your name a common occurrence on phone message pads and on voice mails, chances are that someone will call you back just so you stop calling. These two also taught me that if someone is trying to give you the runaround you should call them out on it. Don’t let anyone try to keep you from getting your story.
From Kathleen Moore I learned the art of finding a story. She is possibly one of the most inquisitive people I have ever met with and an artful knack for asking the right people the right questions. No tip is too small for her to pursue and no issue too insignificant to learn more about.
Miles Reed showed me that even if it sounds lackluster it can still be a great story. A huge bullfrog in a swimming pool can be just as interesting as the Senate coup if you ask the right questions. A group of women knitting for charity in the Alplaus Post Office is just as newsworthy as Vice President Joe Biden speaking at Shenendehowa if you pay attention to the details. From Miles, I learned that anything can be a story, and a good one at that.
From Irv Dean and Judy Patrick I learned the best way to arrange quotes to make my stories easier to read. From just watching the two of them discuss stories and content for the paper I learned many invaluable lessons about the world of print journalism. I never would have learned these things inside a college classroom and I am immensely thankful for the opportunity to expand my breadth of knowledge.
Everyone else here, whether they realized it or not, have been the greatest teachers I could have ever asked for. It was an experience to see breaking news go from the police scanner, to the reporter’s computer and on to the Web site in a matter of minutes. It was such a great experience to see how the whole newspaper comes together every day. The fact that an entire newspaper gets written and printed in one day still boggles my mind even if I now have a better understanding of how it works.
I’ve had over 50 stories published this summer, a number that I wouldn’t believe if I hadn’t counted the newspaper clippings myself. Sometimes I think they’re all crazy for giving a measly intern so much responsibility. I’m just this University at Buffalo student from Clifton Park who wants to get into journalism. I went from writing for and editing my college newspaper to writing for The Daily Gazette in Schenectady, NY. I still can’t believe it.
When I showed up all starry-eyed and nervous in May I never thought I’d be sitting here today writing a blog about my experiences. I never thought I would have accomplished as much as I did. I honestly thought I would choke on the responsibility and make a fool of myself. That’s something else I learned from the Gazette this summer — how not to be scared. With the encouragement of all the reporters and editors I went out and reported my stories, swallowing my nerves along the way. I knew I had to get the story because I didn’t want to let them down.
Through all the things I’ve learned this summer the one that stands out to me the most is how I learned to believe in myself. Without all the people here who showed enough faith in me to send me out and report on stories by myself I never would have acquired the gall to go forth with a career in journalism. I used to be scared to talk to public officials or strangers but after this summer I’m not anymore. I know that I can do this job and I can do it well. The mayor of Schenectady returned my phone call and I interviewed him and didn’t pass out ... now that’s progress. Though, I will admit that when I met Vice President Joe Biden I was completely starstruck and couldn’t say a word. I may as well have been a 13-year-old at a Jonas Brothers concert.
I sit here, on my last day, reflecting on what I’ve learned, and it’s bittersweet. I’m excited to make the 300-mile journey back to Buffalo and finish up my last year of school, but I’m sad that I have to leave this internship and all of these people. I’ve learned so much and I don’t want it to end. I wonder if the Gazette would consider relocating to western New York?
I’m not sure if everyone at the Gazette knows how much they taught me either outwardly or tacitly and this blog seems a bit trivial when I really consider how much I’ve truly learned this summer. It’s corny but I know that no matter where I go from here I’m always going to take a piece of the Gazette with me.
I walked into this office a nervous college student with journalistic dreams. I leave here a confident college student with a journalistic goal, and I couldn’t have done it without the people here at The Gazette.
