My Exciting NABJ Trip to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania!!!

Yesterday was my first day back home from the 2011 National Association of Black Journalists Conference, and although I am just recovering from jet lag, I am bursting with energy and excitement! This was my first NABJ national conference, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was the host city this year. From Wednesday to Saturday, I met journalists and aspiring journalists, attended seminars and panel discussions, and had a great time enjoying Philly!
Among the people I am really glad I got a chance to meet were the editor of Heart and Soul Magazine (who informed me about intern opportunities) and a former intern at Essence Magazine (where I’d like to intern next summer). I took a picture with former BET Nightly News anchor, Jacque Reid, and MSNBC’s Tamron Hall. I sat through panel discussions and ceremonies where I got to listen to people such as Soledad O’brien; Arianna Huffington; U.S. Attorney General, Eric Holder; President Barack Obama (through recorded message on teleprompter), in addition to scores of other journalists and a few professional athletes.
While being at the NABJ conference, I learned things from other students and veteran journalists. I had my resume critiqued at the N.A.B.J. cares booth. From talking with others, I learned the importance of emailing or writing someone after you meet them in order to stay connected. In the seminars I went to I learned about how to better cover stories that deal with energy (from energy efficiency, pollution, renewable resources, gas prices) and redistricting. I listened to panelists talk about how energy and redistricting need to be thoroughly covered and how they can be under-covered, particularly when they affect people of color.
One of the most interesting panel discussions I went to was entitled “Cultural Tensions inside the Black Community” where recently reported incidents of cultural tension amongst African Americans were discussed along with how the media covered them. The panel included former NBA player and coach, Isaiah Thomas, amongst others, and was moderated by Soledad O’brien. I was most interested in what panelists had to say about the ESPN 30 for 30 documentary, “The Fab 5,” aired in March of this year, that featured Jalen Rose saying how as a college basketball player, he viewed black Duke basketball players as “Uncle Toms.” The comment got a lot of media attention, especially on ESPN, and sparked debate.
Overall, I’d describe my NABJ convention experience as inspiring and exciting. Meeting people who have worked for big news organizations such as ABC, NBC, the New York Times, etc. was cool. I had LOTS of fun in Philly, from eating Philly cheese steak, enjoying the nightlife, and seeing a screening of The Help (with actresses, Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer; author, Kathyrn Stockett; and director, Tate Taylor; all present)! I met nice, charismatic journalism students from all over the nation (who never failed to acknowledge my southern accent) and left feeling excited and anxious about what my future in journalism could entail.

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