News position builds senior’s confidence, writing chops
Kelsey Buckley ’18 interns at Salmon Press Media
Supported by The Blakely Fetridge Bundy ’66 Work and Learning Fellowship
Major: Environmental science
Media venture: “As a journalism minor, I needed to complete an internship to fulfill the requirements. I reached out to Salmon Press Media, because their main office is close to my home and was a convenient location for a winter internship. They produce several local papers that cover news in the Lakes Region of New Hampshire, and I have become familiar with several of them as a local to the area. I thought it was a great and unique opportunity to be contributing to the local papers that I grew up reading.”
The fine print: “My biggest responsibility was copy editing for the five papers that Salmon Press produces. Press releases, obituaries and letters to the editor are just a few of the types of pieces that I helped prepare for print daily. I also had the opportunity to pursue some stories on my own. During my time at Salmon Press, I interviewed local politicians and covered selectmen meetings and the opening of local businesses.”
Learning by doing: “I learned to be adaptive. As an intern, I received my story assignments at the last minute when a regular reporter was unable to cover something. I had no experience reporting before coming to Salmon Press, so I had to learn as I went, often not really knowing what to expect.”
Opportunities: “I did not expect having the opportunity to conduct interviews and write my own stories so quickly. When I was given my first assignment, I was only given a location of where I needed to be and had to figure out the rest from there. From interviewing patrons to taking pictures, I had to figure out a lot on my own without prior experience or instruction. At first it was intimidating, but I think I learned a lot faster because of the freedom I was given.”
Byline pride: “My favorite moment was when I first saw one of my articles published in the newspaper. After being so nervous during my first assignment, seeing my name printed with my story gave me a big sense of accomplishment.”
Applying coursework: “The journalism course that I took with visiting professor Ted Nesi ’07 was the biggest help with this internship. The course taught me the basics of writing different types of news articles, which obviously was useful during my work.”
A way with words: “I do not plan on pursuing journalism as a full-time career. However, I can see myself potentially writing in the future, and I think many of the skills I developed during this internship could be used outside the field of journalism.”
>> See more winter internship stories