Student:

Major: Journalism

Grade: Senior

Position: Opinion and Editorial Writing Intern at The Seattle Times (April 2013 to June 2013), Unpaid, can be for credit, 20 hours/week

Duties include:

“I write opinion columns and editorials representing The Seattle Times’ editorial board. When I am assigned a topic or my pitch is accepted, I do background research and hold interviews to prepare myself to begin writing my editorial or column. As I put together my piece, I bring in drafts to review with my editors and to bounce ideas off of them.”

How did you find out about it?

“I was recommended by Jessica Partnow to apply for the internship.”  

What made you decide to apply?

“A chance to intern at The Seattle Times is an amazing opportunity! I couldn’t pass up being able to work with some of the nation’s best reporters. Also, my writing background is mostly in arts and entertainment writing. I thought that having an opportunity to work at a newspaper would afford me the chance to become a more well-rounded writer.”

What do you like most about it?

“I like that I am able to pitch my own ideas to the head Editorial editors. It was a little daunting at first, but I was able to overcome my nervousness and throw my ideas out there. They have been very receptive and help me go more in-depth in forming my ideas.”

Is there anything you would change?

“Honestly, I cannot think of anything. They have been really flexible with my schedule and have been receptive toward my pitches.”

What was the working environment like?

“At first, the internship was very slow. Compared to my previous internship which had me doing fact-checking, copy-editing, blogging, and more, my only job at The Times is to write. During the time in the office, I conduct my background research, draft my editorials, and conduct interviews. The quiet can be kind of unnerving sometimes.”

How do you think it will help you and your career or future goals?

“Eventually, I would like to do video and photo reporting abroad about human rights issues. As an editorial writer, it is important to take a stand with my opinions to persuade my audience. I think it is important to be able to do this in the written and visual formats.”

What’s your favorite accomplishment so far?

“My first published editorial (found here) was a really big deal. It is one thing to see your work published online, but to see it in a tangible newspaper was pretty mind-blowing.”

Is there anything else you would like to add?

“To my fellow students, I know we keep hearing that ‘networking is everything’ and I know that it is hard. The opportunities we get are not only a product of our hard work, but of the connections we strive to make and maintain. Find yourselves mentors and do not be afraid to look to the people who have been teaching you these last four years.”

The Seattle Globalist team has also vowed to inflate one balloon for every $10 they raise, hopefully filling their tiny office to the rafters. Word is that editor and co-founder Alex Stonehill will also be learning how to blow up a balloon, as somehow he has gone this long without knowing how.

For a complete list of today’s events, including a studio tour with an Emmy-winning animator, a baking lesson, and a session with Seattle Times and GeekWire columnist Monica Guzman, click here>>

“I started it, I am it, and I have been growing the company since 1987,” Wright said.

Inspired by visitors thinking that Orcas Island was named after the Orca whale and other misinformation about her home state, Wright began to produce travel videos for places around Washington. She first tackled the San Juan Islands since she grew up nearby in Anacortes. Other videos include the Cascade Loop, the Olympic Peninsula, Seattle, and a special hour-long tour of Washington State.

However, getting to be the top dog at her own company was not all rainbows and butterflies. The School of Communications at the time ran Channel 9, where Wright went to work just two days after she graduated. As the only woman staff member her duties included reception, traffic, assistant to three managers, and making coffee. Wright worked for several different stations in TV traffic or promotion.

“It was very interesting. This was the 60’s and you had very little support from the stations because they didn’t feel that a woman’s place was in television,” she said. “And in fact…I went to ask for a raise and the woman that was interviewing me was the secretary to the President and said, ‘Look, we will not pay any woman more than a secretary rate.’”

Some of the drive to keep going comes from Pat Cranston, a pioneer for women of the profession who worked for the University of Washington for 40 years. Many of Cranston’s students were the only women hired at stations and she always stressed that you must work and prove that you can do the job, Wright said.

“She would open the door, walk into the class and say, ‘Good morning troops, onward and upward,’ in her Texas accent,” Wright said, “And she always wore open-toed high heel shoes. She had such a good rapport with the students because she wasn’t that much different in age than many of us.”

Nancy Wright (Tarbox) with her classmates in the Communications fraternity Beta Rho Tau. Photo courtesy Wright

A favorite quarter ending tradition was for Cranston to invite the entire class over for a Texas chili feed. Wright’s classmates included several Korean War veterans who were coming back to school, including Bob Newman who played Gertrude on the J.P. Patches Show. One of The Brothers Four, Bob Flick was also a student in the class.

“They were older than me and teased me a lot because I didn’t know what the world was really like being a sweet young thing of 18,” Wright recalled. “We just had a lot of fun.”

Wright stays in touch with many of her classmates through the Association for Women in Communications, an organization she has been a part of since the 1970’s. She goes to monthly meetings and participates in the smaller weekly gatherings as well.

“The group is interesting because there are quite a range of ages in the group. There are women that operate their own companies and then there are women right out of school,” she said. “It’s a nice mix and I think that helps in sharing information.”

Wright and her husband Velle started a video production company together in the 1990’s and found eight months later that they had different managing styles, so she split off to create Hatzoff Productions. When Velle retired in 2002, one of their employees bought their video company, renamed it, and has continued to build it with some of the same clientele Wrights worked with for over 20 years.

Wright has not retired from Hatzoff and continues to update her travel videos with technological and geographical changes.

Suzanne Selfors, photo by Kate deVeaux

Now out with her tenth publication on the shelves in the Unites States, Suzanne Selfors (M.A., 1990) has found her calling in writing children’s books. Although the journey to get there wasn’t easy, she said she has found her voice.

Selfors’ story begins at the end of her driveway as she watched the school bus drive away carrying her youngest daughter to her first day of elementary school.

“I thought, ‘my life is about to change.’ This is my youngest child; she’s gone off to school and I can actually do something different now,” Selfors said. “I walked up my driveway, sat down at my computer, and I googled local writing classes.”

Selfors registered that same day at the University of Washington in their extension program for short story writing. Selfors had already graduated from the UW years earlier in 1990 with a master’s in communication with a popular culture emphasis. At that time she was interested in studying film, writing a thesis titled “From Menace to Messiah: A Cultural Study of the American Extraterrestrial Encounter Film.”

While at the UW, Selfors had an internship with KCPQ Television, where she was later hired after graduation as a research assistant. Channel 13 had just become the Fox affiliate, so the opportunity was well received.

“I was studying all the trends and trying to help the sales staff convince advertisers where they should place their advertising based on demographic and research information,” Selfors said.

However, Selfors decided to quit her job when she got married and began to start a family. She read to her children every night, even when they were babies, and started to notice something.

“There was a renaissance going on in the children’s publishing world. The Harry Potter books had changed the market and publishers were hungry. I fell in love with Lemony Snicket’s books, and a series by Suzanne Collins called Gregor the Overlander,” Selfors said. “I realized that I really wanted to write fiction.”

Selfors took the ferry from Bainbridge Island every Tuesday and Thursday night to go to the short story writing class at the UW.

“It was the first time I’d ever written an opening chapter for a novel,” Selfors said. “So that was nerve wracking for me. But the positive feedback gave me the courage to move forward with my story.”

In one year, from September 2002 to September 2003, Selfors had written her first adult novel that was set in Ancient Greece, found a literary agent that wanted to represent her, and it was being submitted to 12 publishing houses in New York City. Unfortunately, she got 12 rejection letters in return.

“It was a really dense historical novel and had a lot of research so I can look back and see why it got rejected,” Selfors said, “but I was stubborn so I wrote another adult novel, set it in ancient Greece again and it got rejected.”

When Selfors then wrote a third adult historical fiction novel that did not get picked up, she became discouraged and was close to giving up. But, nonetheless, the next story she wrote was a children’s novel titled “To Catch a Mermaid.” She finished writing it in 2005 and her agent sent it out immediately.

“He sent it to seven houses and all seven made offers on it,” Selfors said. “It went to auction, which is every writers dream because you have publishing houses fighting over you. So I realized I had found my voice and that’s what I was meant to write. It felt right.”

She said in contrast to the historical fiction novels which she had to fight her way through, the children’s books just flowed. Her kids were a major inspiration for “To Catch a Mermaid.”

“I wrote that first book for them,” Selfors said. “I read it to them while I was writing and I knew I was doing something right because at the end of each chapter they would beg me to keep reading.”

Selfors said writer’s block has never been a problem for her and that she has been creating stories in one way or another her whole life.

“I just have a brain that is very noisy,” Selfors said. “I have stories just waiting in line to be told.”

The cover of Selfors’ latest book

Her latest book “The Sasquatch Escape” debuted last month and is the first in a middle-grade series called, The Imaginary Veterinary Series. Four books in the series are currently under contract, with more to follow. The award-winning illustrator, Dan Santat, is designing the covers.

Selfors said that the best part about her job is getting letters, drawings, and gifts from young readers. She has also written four teen novels that inspire deeper letters from adolescents. Selfors said she responds to every single one.

Selfors is writing for three publishing houses at the moment (Bloomsbury Publishing; Little, Brown and Company; and HarperCollins), but when she has time she would like to try writing an adult novel again someday. Her first Greek novel ended up being published in Greece, so “I figured if the Greeks like it, it can’t be that bad,” Selfors joked. She wants to revisit the novel to smooth it out and try publishing it in the United States again.

“I’m happy that I’m building readership,” Selfors said. “It’s been slow and steady, but with each book I produce it does a little better than the last one.”

Her books have earned starred reviews, been Indie Picks, and Junior Library Guild award-winners. They’ve been included on the School Library Journal Best Books list, YALSA Best Books for Teens List, and multiple state lists, to name a few accolades. And they’ve been Scholastic Book Fair best-sellers.

“A lot of people think to make money in this business you have to be a New York Times best-selling author, but you don’t,” Selfors said. “If you continue to put out work that does well, you can make a living out of this.”

Although, with that being said, Selfors does hope to be a New York Times best-selling author one day.

The special screening will take place in CMU 120 on Wednesday, May 15 from 6 to 8 with a Q&A session with Bowker and director Thomas Lee Wright immediately following the film.

Synopsis: In 2001, Kevin Mincio was an up-and-coming Goldman Sachs vice president with an office at 1 Liberty Plaza (next door to the World Trade Center) when the first plane hit the tower. In an instant, his life was transformed. He put his promising career on hold to enlist in the Army and was assigned at Fort Lewis, Washington, to America’s first Stryker Brigade. Deployed to Iraq, Mincio was assigned as a reconnaissance scout in the 5-20 Infantry Battalion. Though he would eventually come home, his Army buddy, Staff Sgt. Jesse Williams, would not be as fortunate. Sgt. Mincio made a vow to help care for Williams’ daughter and family, and later to do all he could for the families of fallen soldiers. With those goals in mind, he started the Team Jesse Foundation, and launched fundraising efforts like “The Ride,” a challenging bicycle trip of 4,200 miles over 95 days aiming to arrive at Ground Zero on the tenth anniversary of 9/11. “The Long Ride Home” is the story of that ride – and of Kevin Mincio’s personal quest to honor the sacred promise he made to a friend and fellow soldier.

Bios:

Brett Bowker earned his B.A. in journalism at the University of Washington in 2010. After graduation he traveled to Europe and China. Having worked in lacrosse reporting in Washington State for several years, he discovered the story of Team Jesse and spearheaded the transcontinental filming effort as producer and cinematographer. “The Long Ride Home” is his first film of the beginning of a promising career.

Thomas Lee Wright (director, producer, writer) has been making socially-conscious documentaries for more than 20 years, ranging from the definitive film “Trade Off” about the WTO protests in Seattle, which won the Golden Space Needle Award for Best Documentary at SIFF 2000 and toured with the International Human Rights Watch Festival, to an investigation of gangs during the 1992 LA riots called “Eight-Tray Gangster: The Making of a Crip,” which the Hollywood Reporter called “more sympathetic and frightening than any film on the subject.” It also premiered at the American Film Institute Festival and aired on the Discovery Channel.

Please register to attend this free event >>

Photo courtesy Ariel Tang

Student: Ariel Tang

Major: Communication

Grade: Graduated in March

Position: Marketing intern at Comcast Arena at Everett, January to March 2013, for credit, about eight to 12 hours per week

Duties include:

“As a marketing intern I worked with the marketing manager, so I reported to him. My daily duty was compiling extensive grassroots cross-promotion partnership contacts for upcoming events. We did Phineas and Ferb for Disney, Rhythm of the Dance, Sesame Street Live, Cirque Zuma Zuma, and others. I would set up a excel spreadsheet to target potential partners within the Everett community (family-oriented restaurants, schools, etc.) to promote our events to the public. I called and reached out to more than 50 local businesses and restaurants for cross-promotion opportunities. It was a challenge at first because I had never done that before, but every yes made 10 no’s worth it. Other than that I did some Photoshop and designing for the posters too.”

How did you find out about it?  

Through the Thursday internship sessions.

What made you decide to apply?

“I saw the posting from Victoria Sprang and had wanted to go into marketing and PR. When I saw the marketing internship, I searched Comcast Arena and a lot of their clients are Disney related. I love Disney, a big fan; my name is Ariel. So I met with the manager and we had a great talk. He reached out to me after a few weeks. Even though I wasn’t looking for an internship because I had a part-time job and was taking 18 credits, he said we have an opening and I think you’d be a great fit, so I decided to do it.”

What did you like most about it?

“My manager gave me a lot of flexibility about voicing myself. As an intern I felt like I could talk to him at any time about any ideas. I’m still in contact with him and I think that’s really valuable for both of us.”

What was your favorite accomplishment?

“Toward the end of my internship my manager asked me if I knew what EDM was. I was like, “What? Ya, it’s Electronic Dance Music!” I was surprised because they aren’t family oriented and EDM shows usually go to venues near downtown Seattle, so he said he really needed my help because I was the youngest in the office who understands EDM. My manager asked me to outline marketing and social media campaigns because he hadn’t worked with EDM before, so he gave me a lot of control for this project, which was really fun.”

Is there anything you would change?

“When the EDM project came around, everyone in the office said, “Why didn’t I know you before?” It was really overwhelming as my first office setting internship with people that had a lot more experience than me. I was really shy at the beginning just working in my cubicle and I didn’t show my personality enough. I feel like a skill in the office is to build personal relationships and if I were to go back, I would try to do that earlier. They were all really nice, I was just too intimidated, but the EDM project was the turning point.”

What was the working environment like?

“The administrative office is in the arena at Everett, so some people walk the arena at lunch and watch the Everett Silvertips hockey team practice. I think there are 15 full-time employees working in the administrative office and it was just a regular office setting with a reception area, the departmental directors have their own offices, and then the rest of the managers and interns have cubicles.”

How do you think it will help you and your career or future goals?

“Before, I was struggling with whether to do marketing or PR thinking that they were pretty much the same, but after I did the marketing internship I could see the difference. The skills are similar with communication, writing, and research, but PR contains a storytelling factor, whereas marketing focuses more on numbers and business aspects. Now I know that I really want to go into PR. However, I don’t regret doing the marketing internship because it took my skills to another level and directed me to PR.”

What’s next for Ariel?

“On May 1, I started a PR internship with the Classical KING FM 98.1. It’s a nonprofit radio station and it’s already been such a good experience. Last Wednesday was the start of their quarterly spring fund drive. You see so many people who are so passionate about reaching one goal and the office is super cool. You see people receiving calls, getting more money, reaching out to the community and it’s for the benefit of spreading awareness of classical music to the public. So what they do is for a good cause and you see a really motivated team.”

(Ariel found out about this opportunity through Internship Thursdays as well.)

Her parents met in Mattawa after emigrating from Mexico. Her mother completed second grade in Mexico and her father attended school until eighth grade. He began working right away upon entering the U.S. as a fruit picker, construction worker, and other odd jobs that didn’t require English skills or documentation. Quintero wasn’t always sure that college was an option for her.

“Growing up and seeing them work so hard made me realize that I wanted something different,” Quintero said. “I just didn’t know how to go about it.”

Without the resources that bigger schools had, Quintero wasn’t quite sure where to go to seek out opportunities. But when she heard the word college, she began to ask her teachers, “What is this college thing that you guys always talk about? Where can I go?”

“Finally in sixth grade I had this amazing teacher that really pushed me and I had her all the way through eighth grade,” Quintero said. “She just really put the idea of going to college in my mind and I feel like I needed that push.”

This led to her high school mission of getting to college. Quintero worked hard, learned about scholarships, and graduated as the co-valedictorian of her class and as a Gates Millennium Scholar. While complying with her parent’s wishes of staying in state, Quintero chose the University of Washington with all four years paid by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, including three study abroad experiences.

“I’m really happy I chose Seattle and the UW,” Quintero said. “It’s been amazing and honestly I think that it doesn’t matter where you go, it’s what you make of the experience.”

Although she thought she would take the business path, David Domke’s COM 201 class changed her mind. She began to pursue a degree in Communication with minors in Spanish and Diversity.

THE PAGEANT LIFE

Inspired by her freshman year roommate, Fabiola Viveros, who held the title of Miss Hispanic Seafair in 2009, Quintero decided to participate in 2011. She had done Junior Miss in high school (now called America’s Distinguished Young Woman), which is also a scholarship program, but figured this one would be “ten times bigger and better.” The pageant involves months of preparation with the help of Univision KUNS-TV and other workshops that became valuable to Quintero’s future.

“I didn’t so much have the intention of becoming Miss Hispanic Seafair since my tuition is covered and there is a very generous scholarship that comes with winning the title,” she said, “but more than anything I wanted to use it as a networking opportunity and as a way to develop myself, my public speaking and presentation skills, and personal interview skills.”

Quintero won Miss Hispanic Seafair in May 2011 and went on to compete for the title of Miss Seafair for the City of Seattle. Not knowing at the time how much historical value the pageant had for the city, she quickly learned as she was crowned the 62nd Miss Seafair in July of the same year.

“So here I was at the end of my summer about to leave for India for an exploration seminar, I had two titles and I thought, boy what did I get myself into,” she said. “I went to India, came back, and thought about what I wanted my focus to be during the year.”

Quintero participated in over 200 community-oriented events, all the while holding a part-time job on campus and being a full-time student.

“It was a lot of work and not a lot of sleep,” she said, “but it was so worth it and I would do it again in a heartbeat. I learned so much about the city of Seattle, about myself, and about the different communities that make up Seattle – life changing.”

MAKING IT HAPPEN

During the times Quintero felt overwhelmed and like she just wanted to quit, her Miss Hispanic Seafair director Michelle Font (who is now her roommate) prodded her to keep going. Font won Miss Washington USA in 2007 and competed in the Miss USA pageant the following year. She now works for Boeing.

“The conversation would always end with ‘just make it happen,’” Quintero said. “Just telling myself to make it happen really helps to this day and I want other people to know that if they engrave those words in their mind, it’s a mentality that will take them far.”

Those words became the inspiration for her blog, where she tells the stories of her life and the inspiring people around her. Many of the events that she attends (and later writes about) stem from connections she made during her reign as Miss Seafair. One of those relationships led to Quintero starring in two commercials for Community Health Plan of Washington, which paid for her entire cancer treatment when she was diagnosed with lymphoma at age nine.

“I think [having cancer] is one of those experiences that will keep evolving as I grow,” Quintero said. “Even though it happened when I was nine, it’s still very vivid in my mind. I have scars and I was poked so much that I have these little memories that are constantly reminding me of that experience.”

Although Quintero’s friends jokingly criticize her for being busy and taking on more than she probably should, that’s just how she wants it.

“I love being busy because I think that we’re here for such a little amount of time, why not take advantage and do as much as possible,” Quintero said. “It sounds a little cliché, but [cancer] really does make you realize that just waking up each day is a blessing.”

Participating in three study abroad programs is one way that Quintero is not wasting time. She began in Tahiti after her freshman year, where she studied mixed race experiences for a month. Although she enjoyed the warm weather, she decided she wanted her next trip to challenge her “as far as everyday luxuries that we take for granted.” While being accepted to two programs, the Rwanda trip fell through, so she went to India to study women’s leadership.

“That’s where I learned more about the impact the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is having all over the world, but specifically on people in India,” she said. “We met with leaders from all spectrums of society from the banking community to women who are illiterate that are uplifting their society.”

Although the differences of language, culture, and religion were evident, Quintero chose to focus on the similarities.

“It allowed me to realize that while we may be different, there are so many values that connect us to humanity,” she said. “We all have the same concerns, we all want to succeed, and we all worry about our family. To live that and realize that without saying a word to someone was so powerful.”

After India, Quintero decided she wanted a quarter-long experience, so she applied to the Communication trip in Rome. Although learning the language was difficult because Spanish is so similar to Italian, she enjoyed being more of a seasonal traveler, rather than just a tourist.

NOW AND NEXT

Currently, Quintero is an intern at KCTS9 in the community engagement and education department. While already loving it, she is realistic about job searching for after she graduates in June. She is interested in doing work with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation as well.

“I feel like I owe them so much, but also I want whatever I do to have an international focus,” Quintero said. “I want to continue traveling all around the world and mixing communications and community work. Whatever that job is, I hope to find it.”

While she was invested in her education, she recognizes those people that were invested in her. When visiting her hometown, she advises students there to look beyond Eastern Washington. She was part of the Dream Project for a while as well, seeing the same issues arise in Seattle as she faced in Mattawa.

“There are still a lot of disadvantaged students here who don’t know where to access their resources, or maybe their teachers aren’t invested, or their parents don’t push them to seek out those resources,” Quintero said. “When they would tell me their story, I would say it’s valid, but it’s not an excuse. They were telling me my story and if I can do it, you can do it.”

Moral of this story: make it happen.

Welcome plaque in University of Washington’s Rome Center in the Campo di Fiori. Photo by Val Gilmore

The name Amanda Knox triggers an array of emotions and opinions when mentioned around Seattle. American studying abroad turned alleged murderer turned innocent victim are just a few milestones that have decorated Knox’s last four years. But the story does not end there.

Amanda Knox is the American student who was convicted of killing her roommate, Meredith Kercher, while studying abroad in Perugia, Italy in 2007. On March 26, 2013, the Italian Supreme Court overturned Knox’s acquittal and her case was reopened once more. Although reports suggest Knox will not have to return to Italian prison even if she is convicted in the upcoming trial, the new investigation brings up the past controversy for both Knox and more broadly those associated with the University of Washington, particularly students interested in traveling abroad to Italy. It was just announced that Knox’s memoir “Waiting to be Heard” will be released on April 30, once again bringing her situation to the public forefront.

Study abroad is a valuable experience taken by thousands of American students every year. But without proper preparation one might wonder if these students are ready to navigate potentially dangerous situations that could lead to lasting consequences.

Lisa Coutu, Director of the Communication Rome Program at University of Washington, is aware but not obsessed with the recent trial. “From the outside looking in there are some cautionary notes we can learn from [Amanda Knox’s] situation,” she said. “I feel the main issue is how to make sure students are safe… We need to focus on the girl who was killed and how to avoid that fate,” Coutu commented.

As the organizer of the faculty lead program to Italy, Coutu understands the importance of educating students and faculty traveling abroad about Knox’s trial and implementing structures to prevent negative interactions with locals. “I told my group [in 2012] to be careful about disclosing we were from UW. I didn’t know how the reception would be since we went so soon after she was acquitted, so I wanted them to be conscious.”

I was one of those students. I traveled to Rome through Coutu’s communication program in 2012 with 22 other students. Before leaving, I was asked several times if I was nervous to be going to Italy in light of Knox’s trial. As the question persisted I grew more and more wary of the possibility of discrimination and prejudice from locals. Coutu initiated several conversations prior to our departure, setting boundaries and bringing light to the reality of the situation. “How you present yourself as an American is the issue. Students perpetuate stereotypes so they need to be aware if they are adding a positive or negative influence,” Coutu said.

Hudson (right) and me (middle) touring the Coliseum with our classmate Anna Chatilo (left). Photo by Val Gilmore

I was very worried about how Italians would perceive me. Would they think of me as another “Amanda Knox” simply because we shared the same school and hometown? Would I feel safe interacting with locals? There was a brief sense of pre-travel anxiety due to the deep preparation I received. But due to the concrete structures Coutu put into place I felt protected and confident. However, everyone in my group did not share this sentiment.

Bekah Hudson, a University of Washington Tacoma student, was a nervous traveler to begin with. Warned by family and friends of the potential judgment she might receive due to the Knox case, Hudson was prepared for the worst. Upon arriving, she found herself nervous to interact with locals. After spending a few weeks in Rome, Hudson began practicing the exercises of self-awareness and mindful interactions Coutu preached and gained some confidence but never to the level she desired. “I would have loved to put the [Amanda Knox] trial out of my mind, but could never fully believe the locals weren’t judging me for it everywhere I went,” Hudson said.

Lauren Becherer, a senior at University of Washington, just returned from studying abroad in Rome through the Department of Communication. Becherer reported always feeling safe in Italy despite warnings of the potentially hostile atmosphere for Americans, citing many of Coutu’s preparatory structures as reasons for her comfort. “It is important to always be aware of your surroundings, have a hand on your belongings, and always travel with another person,” Becherer said.

Coutu is a firm believer in setting boundaries when admitting students to the program. “I try to get groups of students who can [best] represent the University. We had the opportunity to give UW a good name. Our actions reflect on ourselves and future UW study abroad students… So I was careful who I admitted and looked for people who followed rules.” Despite ample preparation and thorough planning, Coutu is realistic that ultimately it is the students who are making the decisions. “You never really know. It wasn’t perfect, but it was all about safety,” she said.

The Vatican at sunset. Photo by Val Gilmore

Even with the trial reopening, Seattle students should not be discouraged to travel. Instead, educating themselves on how to stay safe and smart is a good place to start. Here is a list of how to stay out of legal trouble when abroad:

1) Familiarize yourself with local laws. You are not subject to the American judicial system in foreign countries so it is important to educate yourself on local rules and procedures of where you are traveling.

2) Never travel alone. Whether you are walking across the street or flying to another country, that rule you learned in elementary school of “traveling in pairs” rings as true as ever.

3) Avoid high crime areas, especially at night. You don’t have to stick to the tourist traps, but venturing to the rough areas of town should be avoided.

4) Dress modestly and conservatively. Flashy clothing and accessories might bring unwanted attention by locals, leading to an uncomfortable and possibly dangerous situation.

5) Be careful of who you trust. If you decide to go to dinner with a local, consider making it a double date or to somewhere public. If something doesn’t feel right, listen to your intuition and remove yourself from the situation immediately.

-By Val Gilmore, COM 363 Entrepreneurial Journalism

These are all questions that rang around the room as 20 journalism and public relations students, along with some of The Daily staff, grappled with a realistic simulation of a campus shooting. The students were split up into groups of editors, visual journalists, reporters, and crisis communicators and each sector had their own qualified mentor. The groups were given a piece of paper containing different facts at each of the three phases. Some phases included updates that intensified the decision making.

Seattle police reporter for The Seattle Times Sara Jean Green assisted the reporter group. Green was part of the team that won the Pulitzer Prize in 2010 for Breaking News Reporting during the 2009 Lakewood shooting that left four police officers dead.

Assistant Metro Editor for crime and justice at The Times John de Leon helped the editors, including editor-in-chief of The Daily Sarah Schweppe.

“It was great to get advice from professional journalists on how to handle sensitive situations,” Schweppe said. “I also enjoyed the discussion of the importance of getting the most accurate information out to the public, even if it means being a few minutes later than other outlets. Making ethical decisions on a time crunch can be difficult, and I think the exercise helped us work through what that’s like.”

Schweppe related the simulation to decisions made last year at The Daily during the Cafe Racer incident. She said it was interesting to look back at how they handled it well and what they could have done better.

Alumna Kellie Cheadle (B.A., 1996), multiplatform content manager at KING-TV, worked with the visual journalists and was able to give recent advice from the Federal Way shooting.

“Covering breaking news is not for the faint of heart,” she said. “It requires quick thinking and solid judgment. I was very impressed by the students who participated. They asked great questions and knew how to use social media to gather and disseminate information.”

In the new world of journalism, updates are made by the second. Cheadle said the one question everyone should always ask in breaking news situations is ‘how do we know that?’

Former editor of The Times Mike Fancher did a debriefing at the end of the training on ethical issues. Emeritus professor Roger Simpson, who taught journalism ethics here for many years, was also present to offer advice.

A special thanks goes out to Diana Kramer, who planned and ran the workshop, and Professor Randy Beam, who helped with planning.

Photo by Karen Rathe

For alum Harry Anderson, returning to campus recently brought back memories of marches and protests against the Vietnam War.

Anderson, who graduated in 1967 with a bachelor’s degree in journalism, visited Karen Rathe’s News Lab – a required class for journalism majors – on April 23. He recapped his career journey, starting in the Communication building, then to the LA Times and later to PR jobs for a Hollywood studio and in health care. He now lives on Whidbey Island and works as an independent communications consultant.

Anderson considers himself a “walking museum.” He has experienced all the major technological eras in journalism, from the linotype machine and carbon copies to the modern digital age of Twitter and instant online news postings.

Originally from Tacoma, Anderson wanted to become a journalist for as long as he could remember. It was something his parents didn’t understand.

He described his time at the UW as unforgettable, with some events permanently “burnt into his memory.” He remembers walking out of a classroom and meeting a friend who would tell him that the president (Kennedy) had been assassinated.

“I remember we would protest to end the war, we would encourage students to write messages on the ground right in front of the HUB,” he said. “We were silently protesting and feeling like we were making a change. We certainly tried.”

After graduating, Anderson moved to California where he got a master’s in journalism at UCLA in 1972. During the spring of the same year, Anderson got an internship with the LA Times. This led to a journalism career there spanning 18 years, writing and editing for the business section and putting out a regular column.

In 1990, he was wooed over to the “dark side” – a corporate communications job at Paramount Pictures. At this time, he said he switched gears from a then-stable journalism position to a “rock-and-roll” kind of job where anyone could be fired at any time.

The Hollywood job was indeed a roller coaster ride, Anderson said; after two years, he sought a more stable income. He moved to Santa Barbara to work for Tenet Healthcare in corporate communications, dealing with crisis communications and brand positioning. He also began teaching journalism and crisis communication courses at California State University, University of Southern California, and Southern Methodist University in Texas. Currently he is working as a communications strategic consultant for WriteOne Communications.

With all of these years of experience in both journalism and PR, Anderson discovered that they are not too different from one another.

“The processes are exactly the same,” he said. “You still need to know what the story is. In PR, you are responsible for telling their [corporation’s] stories. You keep asking a lot of people a lot of questions until you get to the truth.”

However, one difference he noted was that in PR you have to “put your best foot forward” and represent the company in a good light while maintaining the truth.

Anderson discussed the changes in the journalism realm. With the new technological developments, it will be harder and harder to find a job as a reporter, especially with print newspapers slowly becoming extinct and moving to the web. Even though he recalls it was always hard to find a job in the field, he acknowledged that today’s market is even more challenging for aspiring journalists.

The blurring of print and video journalism is the new trend, he noted, with more news websites switching to this kind of format. Journalists have to adapt and learn multiple skills, including photography and video, in order to stay in the market. But while online news might be taking over, Anderson still likes his print copy of The New York Times delivered to his home on Whidbey Island, where he currently resides.

Instructor Rathe noted that the future is not entirely grim.

“There are lots of cool possibilities outside of journalism with the skills you acquire here in the program, including PR,” she said.

At the end of the class, students went around the table and talked about why they decided to major in journalism. Answers ranged widely from dreams of becoming a sports writer and the love of telling other people’s stories to reporting on international issues, perhaps going into PR, and video and photo storytelling as their prospective jobs.

Rathe noted how these answers “reflect back the changes in the industry” during her years of teaching journalism.

“Just a few years ago, students would answer ‘I want to do print’ or ‘I want to do TV,’” she said. “What I’m hearing now is just storytelling – in whatever platform it is.”

Students were grateful to have such an experienced speaker come and share his journey with them.

“It was great to have a journalist who has gone outside the very narrow field and was successful,” said Thuc Nhi Nguyen, a sophomore journalism major and current sports editor of The Daily. “It is nice to know that what we learn here, we can apply to other opportunities out there.”

At the end, Anderson had some parting advice for the students.

“If you have the gene [for journalism], then go for it,” he said. “Don’t lose the curiosity. You have to maintain a sense of enthusiasm and curiosity in order to keep going in this business.”

-By Valeria Koulikova, News Lab