Sunday, Monday.
When I arrived on campus Sunday afternoon, I have to say I was a bit—okay, very—nervous. I missed out on my first group meeting which I wish I had been able to attend because even though my group grew into a family, I think I could have used the bonding time. I took a campus tour with Gleason and Kaki and it was very informative. I loved hearing about all the different places on campus. It helped a lot in figuring out if GMU was a place I wanted to apply. I enjoyed hearing Brian Lamb speak about the future of journalism and C-SPAN. I especially liked that he questioned and conversed with us about what we thought. After the lecture, the small group work with Charles and the rest of my group was fun. I loved getting the candy and snacks.
On Monday, the first full day of the Washington Journalism and Media Conference commenced. First thing in the morning was breakfast and group work. I loved being with my group this week. It was really interesting hearing all the different accents. After we did group work we went to the JC Cinema and saw Wes Pippert speak. Mr. Pippert had many positive and helpful remarks about journalism. It was wonderful to hear from someone who has so much experience and wisdom to share with us. When we got back to Shenandoah to do group work and debriefing we did a simulation called “Courting Controversy.” It was two or three cases involving or relating to journalism. I don’t think anyone liked it very much but it was good for us to analyze and sort of experience a situation like those that were simulated. Around noon we all went down to the courtyard area and gathered our lunches and loaded buses. I had a turkey sandwich. I’m sure you wanted to know that. ☺ Then we went to DC to see the Newseum. It was the only museum I didn’t go to while I was here with my family last week. I wish I had gone though because we definitely didn’t get enough time there! My favorite exhibit of the Newseum was the Pulitzer Prize winning photographs. Many of them were tragic and heartbreaking. The picture that featured the fireman holding the small child after the OKC Bombing brought back so many memories. Since I’m from Oklahoma, it hit close to home. My favorite picture was the one of Eisenhower and Kennedy. They looked like two very lonely men. Of course, they do say it’s the loneliest job in the world.
After we explored a little bit, group one saw “Reporting Under Fire” which was about war reporting. We learned that you have to be fair, accurate, and clear along with other similar themes. The presenter was really nice and she seemed like she knew her subject well. When we arrived back on campus, the family went to the radio station and made podcasts. I made mine with Brenna commenting on the Newseum. I loved the people who showed us how to do everything but I can’t remember their names :/ The panel about Political Spin and Public Relations was really interesting for me because I love politics. My favorite panelist was Professor Farnsworth. Much of what he said made sense. When he mentioned that sites like Twitter and Youtube didn’t give you enough time or space to fully explain things, I couldn’t have agreed more because 140 characters or five minutes can’t possibly tell someone everything they need to know about an issue or subject. Most of the panelists mentioned something along the lines of learn how to write and be a resource to each other (campaigns/reporters), kind of like symbiosis.
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