This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Rowan chapter.
Ashley Force, senior journalism major, who is also involved with RTN (Rowan Television Network) and is a Residential Assistant, recently had a journalism internship with FOX29 filled with meeting guests on the show and getting the real journalist experience. She was lucky enough to be hired by FOX29 as well and is now a junior reporter.
Getting the internship
“I was applying to a lot of places for a journalism internship, but FOX29 was always my first choice. I interned there for two semesters. The Spring semester of my Junior year I was an intern in the nightside news department (hard news). In the Fall semester of my senior year I was an intern for their morning news show, Good Day Philadelphia!”
Ashley meeting Hoodie Allen
A day in the life
“People get freaked out when I tell them the hours I worked, but hey, that’s news! During my time at ‘Good Day Philadelphia’ my typical internship day included leaving Rowan at 2am to get to Philly at 3am. Once I was there I would log news shows, tweet from the station’s Twitter account about the stories coming up that day, create a ‘guest sheet’ which is basically a list of all the special guests going on the show that day. Once the show started I would greet the guests and show them where they needed to go. Other days I would go out on the field with reporters and help them with their live segments. Other things included writing stories for FOX29’s website, editing my resume reel, and helping photographers interview people.”
Memorable Moments
“Some interns might say their most memorable moments were being on television, but I actually think I appreciated the behind-the-scenes more. Moments I will never forget were the times I would be filming a stand-up and get critiqued by the professional journalists I worked with. A ‘stand-up’ is when I go in front of the camera and act like I am a reporter, but the footage doesn’t go anywhere but to me to keep for my resume reel. My mentor’s critiques and advice will always stick with me and help me in the future.”
Future plans
“This internship will certainly open doors for me in the future when I venture out and apply for jobs. However currently, it has given me a great opportunity to continue working with FOX29. I am not an intern there anymore, but I was lucky enough to be hired as a Junior Reporter. This position allows me to pitch story ideas to the #FOX29Weekend morning news show producers, and if they approve, I go out on my own and film news packages. Once I finish filming, I am brought into the station on live TV to introduce and talk about my work.”
Ashley hanging out with some muscley guests
Advice for students
“Don’t limit yourself. You have nothing to lose when applying to internships you think you might not get. You will be surprised! If you are confident in yourself, it’s hard for other people not to have confidence in you. Do your research and prepare for your interviews.”