PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) – We’re springing into April of this internship, and as the weather gets warmer, the days get more exciting with guests coming on HRS with local events and festivals for the season. But, there’s a looming sadness as I am a month away from finishing the internship. I mentioned this several times in the previous blog posts, but time is flying by!
Compared to my first blog post, everything has been a breeze. The days are flowing better and I’m not as nervous as I was when I first started. I have gotten comfortable with micing guests and having everyday conversations with people around the station, rather than them being strictly business. Producing has gotten better for me as I got the hang of creating monitors, writing the sponsors board, and wrap and credits for the show. As of late, I’ve noticed that I have gotten increasingly faster at finishing my tasks. Despite this, I’m still very cautious when doing them.
Since the last blog post, I spent a few hours at the sales department with HRS intern John Eldridge. We started off the day by sitting at the department’s morning meeting, and we were able to see how their meetings typically work. After that, we learned about how important the number of viewers are for sales during TV screenings of the news in the area. Kristi shared with us how sales gain their clients and its process. I sat down with Derrick and learned how sales is not only about numbers, but there’s a creative aspect to it. He shared that associates sometimes have to come up with ideas and presentations for the client they are pursuing in order to convince them to work with them. This aspect was really interesting to learn, as I didn’t know that was a part of sales. I also got some helpful tips from Derrick, outside of sales, on the importance of networking when finding a job after graduating. From my day in sales, I was able to get a better understanding of the department and saw how essential they are to WAVY and HRS.
The guests that we have on the show never cease to amaze me with their businesses, events and help to the community. However, I had a great shock when I found out that we were going to have a horse on set at the show. I had the pleasure of meeting Prim from Triple R Ranch, and she was the nicest and most well-behaved horse I’ve ever seen. The preparation for Prim’s arrival was a workout, as we had to move the rug out of the way from under the dresser, but her presence made up for it.
I also went out on Patio 10 for the first time for our segment with Pittie Dog Grill. It was cold and windy that morning, but it was worth it for the hot dogs. They were delicious! I didn’t get the chance to try their custard shake, but I heard some good reviews from those that did try it.
Graduation is quickly approaching and with this, I am thinking more about life afterward. As I complete different tasks throughout the station with producing, floor-directing and writing posts, it makes me think more deeply on what type of career I want to pursue, which was the whole purpose of this internship. As the days go on, I am gaining new experiences and learning something new about the news industry which is helping with my decision after college.
