Journalism alum Emily Morman '13 interns at New York Times...
Back at the time of Wayne State's May commencement, The Detroit News quoted journalism graduate Emily Morman about her first plans after graduation. Now, upon her return from a summer internship at the New York Times, she shared this update:
"This summer, I had the incredible opportunity to intern at the New York Times through the Dow Jones News Fund (DJNF) program. Working on the Metro copy desk of The Times was an amazing experience involving learning a new style book (the AP guide has absolutely no standing there), mustering the courage to suggest changes to reporters who have been working there probably longer than I've been alive and remembering to include honorifics in front of last names. Over the 10 weeks I was at The Times, everyone on staff was incredibly supportive and kind as I learned the ropes and got adjusted to the copy editing routine.
"Prior to New York, I spent time at Temple University in Philadelphia, where the other DJNF interns and I basically went through copy editing boot camp - we would spend eight hours a day in a classroom learning spelling, punctuation, world geography and AP/Times style, then go back to our rooms for homework. The point was not only to prepare us for our responsibilities at our internship sites but also to help us gauge what we knew and - more importantly - what we didn't know. Knowing when to rely on prior knowledge and when to look something up or ask a question was a key skill I used when working on the desk at The Times.
"One of the perks of interning at The Times was that it gave me the opportunity to observe its newsroom, watch decisions being made and meet some of the biggest names in the industry. During my orientation week, interns had the chance to sit in on a Page One meeting and watch the top editors decide which stories were fit for the following day's front page. During an intern speaker series, I listened to people like David Carr, a media columnist for The Times; Margaret Sullivan, the public editor; Andrew Rosenthal, the editorial page editor; and Susan Chira, assistant managing editor for news, talk about the inner workings of The Times, and asked them questions in turn.
"Of course, not all my time in New York was spent at work. A few other interns and I roamed the city and had plenty of adventures, both on the tourist track and off it. Some of my favorites were seeing Broadway shows, walking the Brooklyn Bridge and exploring New York's numerous parks and nature areas. New York being a city you truly have to eat your way through, the bars and restaurants with different types of food - Italian, Dominican and Chinese, among many others - were fantastic, as well.
"It was an unbelievable summer and now I'm back in Detroit for the moment while looking for employment. I know my education at Wayne State and my experiences with The South End prepared me well for this summer and I'm excited for whatever adventure comes next."
The Detroit News, May 4, 2013
"2013 college graduates ready for next journey"
by Shawn D. Lewis
Emily Morman, 22, graduates next week from Wayne State with a degree in journalism. She was accepted into a summer internship program with the New York Times. "I'm hoping to learn a lot and try it out to see if living in a big city like New York is for me," said Morman. "Then I'll figure it out from there." She described her college experience as "fantastic." "One of the major advantages of attending Wayne State was the diversity," she said. "I met a number of different people and participated in numerous cultural events and made some really good friends." Morman said one of the greatest challenges of college life was learning to be independent.