THE DIAMONDBACK
CPMS230: Practicum
I was able to use my experience as a staff writer for The Diamondback to qualify as my Media Scholars Practicum! As part of being on the news desk team, I pitched about 2-3 stories a week as well as covering any breaking crime news that happened around the College Park area. I would write stories from interviewing sources, watching news conferences, and reading news releases.
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Coming into the university, I knew I wanted the experience of writing for a campus news outlet in order to get a sense of what real-world reporting would be like. I saw that The Diamondback did great reporting and I wanted to be a part of it! So I did some freelance work on the general assignments desk, worked at a few different outlets to get a variety of experience, and then applied and joined the news desk! The desk generally has openings every semester, but you can check any listings from any desks on social media, journews, and here: https://dbknews.com/jobs/
Reflecting on Practicum Experience
As I hoped, reporting at The Diamondback has taught me leaps and bounds about what it means to be a reporter- I got to learn how to balance school and writing stories and interviewing sources, as well as instilling the skills of always looking for stories, sharpening my interview skills, and really getting to know the community and the crime beat.
GROWTH OVER TIME
AFTER UMD REPORTS MOST HATE BIAS INCIDENTS IN STATE, STUDENTS REFLECT ON CAMPUS CLIMATE
December 7, 2020
This article was my last full story of the semester, and I think a great demonstration of the strides I made over the semester. I found evidence that UMD had the most hate bias incidents in the state in a report released by state police, and was able to follow up on this with members of the community who are impacted by it. If it wasn't for The Diamondback's consistent reporting on hate bias incidents and me being comfortable with my beat, I was able to write this story. I'm particularly proud of this story because I think it shows how comfortable I am with my beat and brings an important issues to light.
LOOKING FORWARD...
Looking towards the future, I think I'll continue to cover the crime beat for The Diamondback and become more familiar with the stories that may come out of it. In the spring semester, I will also be working for CNS as a reporter for the Washington Bureau, and I hope to get a journalism internship over the summer to expand my real-world reporting experiences! The Diamondback has certainly taught me the skills to be equipped for these kind of experiences. After graduation, I hope to go into journalism full-time so I'd love to continue working at The Diamondback and gaining more experience!