This conference was held at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Washington D.C. from Thursday, Oct. 31 to Sunday, Nov. 3. The Marlin Chronicle staff invited me as a workshop writer to attend the conference with the editors. I learned many things from this conference, from how a presidential photographer works, tips for improving interviews, and advice from news reporters who are currently working in the field of journalism.
Photographing Politics in the Trump Era – Al Drago
Al Drago works as a free-lance photographer, which means he is employed by several news organizations such as Bloomberg and The New York Times. During this session, Al Drago repeatedly gave the advice that college students should experience as many internships as they can. He spoke about the press pool process, which is used as a group of news gathering organizations that combine their resources in the collection of news if they all cannot cover the same event. Drago began photographing President Trump during the Republican Primary in Iowa in 2015. He realized that Trump had a real shot at winning because of the excitement of his supporters.
Inside Story of Covering Trump’s White House – Executive Editor Rob Bluey and White House Correspondent Fred Lucas (Daily Signal)
These two speakers work for the Daily Signal, which is the news outlet of the Heritage Foundation. They are more focused on policy issues, rather than other topics. Fred Lucas is the White House Correspondent and stated that he believes President Trump is more accessible and open to questions than President Obama was. He receives notice of Trump’s schedule a day before, it is subject to change at a moment’s notice. Lucas and Bluey both said that Trump’s tweets drive the message of the day, and that sometimes they are serious, but other times are ridiculous. They questioned whether he is crafty or does he have no filter. They said the answer to both is yes. They stated President Trump uses Twitter to distract the media and change the narrative.
Keynote Speaker: Executive Editor of The Washington Post Marty Baron
Marty Baron began his speech with recognizing that journalism has not been an easy profession. President John Adams implemented the Sedition Act, which shutdown many newspapers and jailed many writers. President Woodrow Wilson implemented the Espionage Act and another Sedition Act, which limited the freedom of the press. He stated that the press exists to hold the government accountable and to hold all powerful people and institutions accountable. In his opinion, the mission of journalism is to provide people the information they need and deserve to know. Baron tells his staff of 850 that they are not at war with this administration, but they are at work with this administration. He wants his newsroom to have people with broad backgrounds, people who have grown up on farms, served in the military, from evangelical colleges, not just coastal elite universities. The main mission is to write about all people, and the struggles they face and their perspective of the world. He also stated that diversity in the newsroom because it is extremely important to have a variety of life experiences, and they do that through active recruiting. He said that 30% of the staff are people of color and that political ideology will never be asked about. His advice for young journalists is to recognize that it is a 9-to-5 job and to say yes if asked to do something. They want to see energy, creativity, and curiosity of the world.
From Campus Newsroom to White House – White House Reporter Kathryn Watson (CBS News)
Kathryn Watson provided a lot of advice in regard to aspiring journalists, which included who you know is everything, mesh professional and personal lives, and reach out to journalists that we respect. Also, to play the long game, treat everyone well, and to stay in touch. In regards to an internship, Watson states to work like you are full time employee set 2 or 3 meaningful goals for published work, and find ways to be helpful. Additionally, she said to amass followers now, so that when we have content to share, we have people to spread it. I asked Watson the question, “Who in the White House is your favorite to interview?” She responded with Director of the National Economic Council Larry Kudlow because he is always willing to answer many questions and is happy to answer them.
Improve Your Interviews – Dr. Steve Thurston of Montgomery College
Dr. Thurston spoke about the process of interviewing and advice regarding interviews. He stated we have the responsibility of convincing people we interview to talk to us because they do not have to. We should get specific information from that person, and that it should be a conversation, and not an interrogation. One of the main goals is to be accurate more than anything. He stated to get the full story and be professional through a process of asking, listening, and repeating. It is also important to keep people’s humanity in mind, and we don’t always have to grill or be harsh.
I spoke with Marlin Fitzwater at The National Press Club Book Fair & Author’s Night. I asked him a question regarding President Trump no longer holding the press briefings and he replied saying he didn’t have a choice. He added that President Trump is like his own press secretary. He believes that whoever succeeds Trump, they will reinstate the traditional press briefing.
I visited the Newseum because it is closing on December 31, 2019. It is a wonderful museum filled with many interesting artifacts and important, relevant information for visitors. My favorite exhibits were the 9/11 Gallery, which included artifacts from The World Trade Center and Pentagon, News Corporation News History, which included newspapers from the most famous events of American History and World History, and Rise Up: Stonewall and the LGBTQ Rights Movement, which provides the history of the gay rights movement and how that movement harnessed the power of public protest and demonstration to change laws.
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