Hi again!
Now that I have officially started my internship, I'm going to share my experience during the first week and some things I think will be helpful in preparing others.
To get acclimated to the way things run around the (virtual) newsroom, I was taught how to use Presto, the software that allows you to create articles, picture galleries, and video reels to then be uploaded to the paper's website. Some of my first assignments were copy-editing stories other reporters had written, reading through a couple op-ed submissions, and creating picture galleries. Doing all of this allowed me to understand the workflow of the newsroom and what the format for articles is at the News Journal. This also helped me become more familiar with SEO, search engine optimization. This is basically a fancy word for all of the elements added to an article in order to make sure it reaches the widest audience possible. These would be things like links to other websites or stories, picture and videos, and system hashtags that make sure a certain category of work, like crime or education, will show up when a user types in those terms. *Workflow is the chain of command an article will go through before being published inlcuding getting edited by an editor, checked for SEO by a digital producer, etc..
So, what are some tips for the first week?
Know AP style - when you're editing a story, you need to know what the AP style guidelines are so you can catch any misspellings or format errors. Sometimes a reporter might forget to change the format of a number or misuse a hyphen in a word. If you know AP style, or keep a stylebook handy, you'll be able to check that everything is formatted correctly.
Accept the mistakes - when learning a news system, getting used to a new work environment, or just doing something you have never done before, you are going to make mistakes. We all do. The point of an internship is to learn and grow, both of which can't happen unless you fall down and get back up a few times. No one expects you to be perfect or do everything right the first time. If you forget how something works or run into a situation you haven't been trained on yet, ask for help! which leads me to my next tip...
REACH OUT - If you are confused about something or made a mistake and need help fixing it, don't hesitate to ask someone else for help. Journalism is a very collaborative field and people are always around to assist each other. If you go into this thinking you will understand everything perfectly the first time around or are afraid to ask someone for help for fear of looking bad, you are only going to hurt yourself. Everyone is around to help you get better, and aside from that, they were once new to everything and most likely know exactly how you feel. During my training, I constantly asked questions to make sure I understood things, and when I needed help, I would always send a quick message or email to someone. It's better to ask for help and move forward rather than getting stuck and becoming frustrated because you can't figure it out on your own.
These are just the most important lessons my first week brought me so I hope they can help you, too. My next post will talk about what it was like to move away from the digital side and jump into reporting, so be sure to keep an eye out for my week 2 recap!