By Jenna French
While interning at Buffalo Toronto Public Media, I certainly learned a lot about myself, gained some valuable life skills, and learned more about the field of journalism.
For example, I learned how a newsroom operates and was able to witness that first-hand on a daily basis. I had the opportunity to work with experienced journalists and ask them questions. Each journalist goes about their stories differently and I was able to pick up a lot of different techniques and try to apply them to my work at WBFO.
Additionally, this was my first college internship, so I was able to learn how to interact with others and present myself in the professional realm. I also recognized that I need to work on my confidence in the professional realm. While at my internship, I felt as though I struggled to speak up for myself and go after what I wanted. Since my mid-semester evaluation, I have tried to work on this and build up my confidence. Honestly, I made some steps in the right direction but still have some work to do. Lately, I have felt more confident about my work and have also asked more about interests that I have that I wanted to pursue. For example, I have asked to meet with the social media team at WBFO. I’m planning on working with them during my last week at my internship.
This internship had many benefits that will impact the rest of my college career and beyond. I have learned the importance of confidence and assertiveness, which applies to any career. It’s important to believe in yourself and have confidence that you can accomplish a task. As I said, this is something I’m still trying to work on. Fortunately, I had the opportunity to see confident journalists in action, so I have made sure to try and follow in their lead.
While at my internship, I was able to write and record one of my own stories that aired on the radio. This was certainly one of my goals, and I’m glad that I had the opportunity to do it. I was also able to work on longer-form pieces with Emyle Watkins. I worked with Emyle on a story that discussed if Mayor Bryon Brown and India Walton lived up to their claims and made their social media accounts accessible to those who are deaf. I had to complete a lot of research for this and had to create an excel sheet to keep track of all their videos on Facebook. These are two of the goals that I had, and I’m glad I was able to accomplish them.
Overall, it is crazy to think that my final semester at Canisius is almost over. Now, I will be moving on to the next step in life and trying to figure out what career I might be interested in pursuing. Currently, I’m still interested in journalism, but I am also interested in teaching. This internship has opened my eyes to the other possibilities available in this field.
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