Translating Tragedy
Summer 2014
鈥I can鈥檛 remember a time when I didn鈥檛 want to be a television news reporter. I started doing the televised morning announcements in elementary school, was an anchor of the morning news in middle and high school, and then I chased my love for journalism to 激情快播.鈥
When a big story breaks, no matter what time of day or night, I get a phone call and have to run out the door to the airport. I keep a 鈥榞o bag鈥 semipacked, and then I throw in a few extras based on what kind of story I鈥檓 covering. Tornadoes mean rain boots, jeans and T-shirts. For nonweather stories, I pack dress clothes. The trick I鈥檝e learned is to have a bit of everything, because sometimes news breaks when you鈥檙e out covering something else.鈥
鈥淭he Newtown school shooting was the most difficult story I鈥檝e ever covered. There was so much sadness in that town. I swear the air felt different. I simply couldn鈥檛 wrap my mind around the horror those families and that community were experiencing. It鈥檚 the only time I鈥檝e ever gotten choked up right before a live shot.鈥
鈥Each time I鈥檝e had to talk to someone on the worst day of his or her life, I鈥檝e learned a little bit more about the sensitivity and tact needed to cover tragedies. I think you have to approach people with compassion first and foremost, and it has to be genuine 鈥 people can see the difference.鈥
鈥I think there is a huge misconception that this is a glamorous job. We go for days only being able to sleep for an hour or two a night, followed by 20-hour shifts. We put our makeup on in car mirrors. And bathrooms? Forget it. Think of natural disasters where everything is destroyed; where do you think all of those reporters take a restroom break? Nowhere. It鈥檚 not for the faint of heart, but it is for people who have a passion for working hard and telling impactful stories.鈥