Renowned journalist Gail Sheehy spoke to hundreds of students in Pruis Hall on Oct. 22 as part of the David Letterman Distinguished Professional Lecture and Workshop Series.
Sheehy spoke about her journey as a female journalist, beginning her career in the 1960s when female journalists were not trusted to write the “big-hitting stories.” With breaking news coverage left to the men, Sheehy said she had to get creative and find ways to make her way into the much envied “testosterone section.”
With words of advice and inspiration to young journalists of all kinds, Sheehy encouraged Ball State students to be just as daring and courageous as herself.
“Daring is the courage to try something you’ve never done before and fail at it. And maybe fail at it again. And try it again until you fail forward,” Sheehy said.
After spending many years in the journalism and writing fields, Sheehy earned herself a successful career in the news industry – getting printed in publications like the Harold Tribune and New York Magazine – and she wrote 17 of her own books.