Post WJMC

In closing, the Washington Journalism and Media Conference was a great way to explore the field of Journalism and to hear from professonals. I made many new friends and learned a lot about journalism as a career that I could not have learned otherwise. I learned that, as a journalist, you have to be persistant, determined, driven, and passionate about what you are covering, and that you should always find the truth. I know that the WJMC furthered my knowledge about journalism and leadership, and I feel much more informed about the skills and characteristics that I will need in this field. I am very grateful that I had the opprotunity to go to the WJMC, and I will always remember the important lessons that I learned there.

The Gala

Thursday night was the WJMC 2012 Gala. It was a time to relax, reflect, and to enjoy ourselves with the new friends we had made that week. First we ate dinner, and then there was a dance afterwards. It was bittersweet because it was our last night at the WJMC with our new friends, many of whom live in different states all around the country. We enjoyed ourseves, though, and had a great time.

Exploring Washington, D.C.

Thursday was our "free day" in D.C., so after the WJMC group photo at Capitol Hill, my friend Emily and I started the day off at the beautiful Botanical Gardens. The Botanical Gardens is virtually a giant greenhouse filled with every kind of plant that you could possibly imagine. Walking through the lucious foilage gave the feeling of being in a tropical rainforest in South America. We had a wonderful time there. After leaving the Gardens, we had some time before my meeting with my Congressional Representative, Dan Burton, so we spent about 30 minutes in the National Museum of the American Indian. We saw artifacts on the first and second floors and ate lunch at an Indian cafe. The food was delicious, and after we finished eating we started walking toward the Rayburn House office building. Once we found Mr. Burton's office, we were introduced to the Congressman and led inside his office. The interview lasted maybe 30 minutes, and in that time I learned a great deal about the man elected to represent my area of Indiana. During the interview he had quoted some of his favorite poetry, and at the end of the interview I asked if he could give me the name of those poems. Not only did he give me the names, but he gave me an entire book of poetry, The Best Loved Poems of the American People. I was very pleased with the interview. After Emily and I left Rayburn House, we went back to the National Museum of the American Indian and explored as much of it as we could before we had to meet back with our group at the Air and Space Museum. At 3:30 we loaded the busses and went back to George Mason to prepare for the gala later that evening.

Even more Presentations

Yesterday, the third full day of the Washington Journalism and Media Conference, was spent mainly listening to guest speakers. We started the day with Josh Earnest, who spoke about White House Communications. Afterwards, we listened to photojournalist Carol Guzy, a four time Pulitzer Prize winner and the photographer credited as being one of the best in her profession. No one in the auditorium was prepared for the passionate emotions that her photos provoked. From topics like earthquakes in Haiti and the strife in Syria to 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina, Carol Guzy captured compelling photos that exposed the cruelty and attrocities that can happen anywhere, yet some of her photos offered a more uplifting message: hope. I learned that photography must come from the heart. After Mrs. Guzy's presentation, we listened to Mathew Schott talk about safe media ethics, then to Sarah Gallagher-Dvorak talk about college admissions, and afterwards to a sports panel who told us the differences of sports writers and normal journalists. I was very excited to meet Malika Balil, Digital Producer of Al Jazeera's, "The Stream". I really enjoyed the session, and I learned a lot about the Stream and different forms of media. Kevin McCarthy ended the day by talking about the way that he does his job. He was a favorite with most of the ladies, so at times I felt like I was at a Justin Beiber concert, but I did enjoy his presentation, especially some of the stories he shared with us. Overall we were given a large quantity of information, and I think that it was a very interesting, thought provoking day.

A Day Full of Guest Speakers

Today was an informative day that included seven guest speakers. Our first guest speaker was Brian Lamb, head of the news station C-SPAN. He asked us many questions and made us think. The next speaker was a woman named Jamie Smith, who works on presidential campaings and in the White House, and she told us of her many experiences with an eager and exited demeanor. The third party was a panel of journalists that included Chuck Todd, Chris Cillizza, Dana Bush, and April Ryan. They bantered, shared stories, and informed us of the many duties of political journalists. The last, and perhaps the most eagerly awaited, guest speaker of the day was Hoda Kotb. She spoke about her experiences and gained the attention and respect of nearly everyone in the room. Hoda seems to be able to sympathise with many people, and people view her as an individual person and not just as a reporter. I was enraptured by her speech and found it very enjoyable. It was a wonderful day full of guest speakers and new information.

Newseum

Today we traveled to the Newseum, a museum dedicated to the preservation and display of news. It was absolutely fantastic! We were able to see part of the Berlin Wall and a guard tower that was situated near Checkpoint Charlie, an exhibit of photos taken by famous sports photographer Neil Leifer, an exhibit concerning presidential elections, an interactive news room where we could practice live reporting, an informative exhibit about the FBI, a sometimes graphic yet heart-wrenching exhibit of Pulitzer Prize pictures, and a moving memorial about 9/11. We also viewed todays newspapers from around the world and learned about the first printing presses and the history of the media. Later in the evening we were able to view and listen to a fascinating presentation by Neil Leifer. It was a great learning expereince for photojournalists. It was another full, exiting day, and I hope that tommorow is just as wonderful!

First Day of WJMC

Today was the first day of the Washington Journalism and Media Conference, and it went very well. I am on the Brown Team (moose!) and we played some games and got to know each other. Our first speaker was Angie Goff, and she gave us a fascinating speech about her life and career, and afterwards I was able to shake her hand and meet her in person! It is getting late, and tommorow we are visiting the Newseum, so I have to get some rest. I will post about the Newseum tommorow!

This is a picture of a whale that we saw at the Museum of Natural History.

Me standing beside the Wishing Tree.

The conference begins tomorrow, and I am exitedly preparing. My family and I arrived in Washington, D.C. yesterday, and today we took a tour of the White House, viewed the exhibits at the Museum of Natural History, and visited the Lincoln Memorial. It was a full day filled with discovery and exitement. There was so much to see at the White House and there was an abundance of information available. We toured the Red, Blue, and Green rooms, and we saw places like the library and the State Room. It was a wonderful opprotunity. My sister Kourtney was enraptured by the dinosaur fossil exhibit at the Museum of Natural History, and my grandma enjoyed seeing the Hope Diamond. My mom and my sister Kaitlin enjoyed browsing through the vast collection of minerals and crystals, and my grandpa is going to return to the Museum of Natural History this week to see the exhibit about the earth's core. My dad and I were pleased to walk along a garden path near the Museum and find the Wishing Tree. Tags and pencils are provided, and people are encouraged to write their wish on a tag and tie it onto the tree. My dad and I wrote our wishes and placed them on a lower limb of the tree. I will try to upload videos and pictures. The Lincoln Memorial was a wondeful way to end the day. We had a great view of the Washington Monument, and the Lincoln Memorial was fantastic! It was a wonderful day, and I hope that the rest of the conference will be just as great!

Chilis Fundraiser

Tonight is the Chilis fundraiser, and I went with my parents, my sisters, and my grandma. Before we left the restaurant, we learned that, excluding the cost of my family's meal, we have raised about $40 so far. Thank you to everyone who took a voucher and ate at Chilis. So far the fundraiser has been a great success. I would also like to thank the individuals who were not able to attend, yet still donated money. Thank you to everyone who has made this fundraiser possible.

http://wjmc.gmu.edu/

Introduction

Hi everyone, and welcome to my blog! I will be keeping you informed on my fundraising efforts and preparations for the Washington Journalism and Media Conference, July 8 through July 13. I am pleased to report that I have been able to raise a lot of money towards the conference, and I would like to recognize some of my sponsors. Thank you to the Greentown Lion's Club, the Kokomo Noon Kiawanis Club, the Kokomo Perspective, Dr. James Whitfield Jr., Pastariffic, Eastern Howard School Corporation, Chilis, Robert Adair Farms, and many other individual contributors. Also, a reminder that this upcoming Wednesday is my fundraiser at Chilis. If you get a voucher and eat at Chilis, then 10% of your purchase will be sent to an account benefitting my trip. You can dine in or order take out, and there is no specific time period for when you need to eat. I hope to see you there!