My experience at NBC affiliate, KNBC LA has so far been a complete whirlwind. I have enjoyed the first couple weeks tremendously and feel right at home when it comes to knowing most of the staff and other interns in the department.

The department I am interning in is California Nonstop News, which is a 7 p.m. show launched in May featuring the top news Los Angeles news on Channel 4.2. Having the opportunity to be one of the first interns in the department of News, Business and Lifestyle has been an honor and an experience that I will take a lot from and be able to apply skills to my senior year at Arizona State University.

The first three weeks I have worked on featured pieces that are on the 7 p.m. show, writing script and shooting video with a photographer. I have been doing a lot of research in breaking news as well as business news to understand and pitch stories that would be great for the Nonstop News show. My task when I first arrive is to check my “nbcuniversal” email, then check the planner on Dalet for that nights show.

Usually if there are spots open for a guest I go right to researching the latest news or look at the rundown plan to catch what video they have already recorded. Using the Dalet software is very different from final cut pro, I have actually found it a bit more frustrating and such a long process to use. I have pitched some really good stories so far and booked guests for the show every time I am in the station.

Besides working on the computers and helping the producers, I have also had a chance to work in the field with videographers and a reporter doing man-on-the-street interviews, b-roll and practicing on camera. Once it hits 6 p.m. I have to be at the station ready to escort the guests to the green room and get them ready for the show, for instance, set up their mics and take them into the studio to meet with the anchor, Colleen Williams.

Overall, I know that the weeks to come working as an intern at KNBC, I will be able to learn and gain experience in the business of journalism. Something that I really enjoy about KNBC LA is that they hold events that each intern can go to, where employee’s come and speak to us about their career paths, mock tryouts and one on one interviews are optional. I want to take advantage of all the events that are presented during this summer’s program. Can’t wait for the many more things to come!

General Gregory “Speedy’’ Martin, a retired four-star general, was in demand from private industry after a 35-year career in the U.S. Air Force. (U.S. Air Force photo/ Staff Sgt. Jerry Fleshman)

Bender is a Loeb Award finalist this year for his story, “From the Pentagon to the Private Sector,” and said just being observant of possible trends in your beat can lead to bigger ideas.

He analyzed 750 three- and four-star retired military generals in his story, which took eight months to finish, and ultimately revealed the Pentagon’s own revolving door wherein retired generals were being hired by defense companies as consultants. And Bender said it all started with his own observations and curiosity.

“The idea generated from covering the Pentagon over recent years where I noticed what seemed to be more retired generals just kind of around, and almost all of them seemed to be working for one private company or another,” Bender said. “It was anecdotal.”

From Bender’s From the Pentagon to the private sector

“An hour after the official ceremony marking the end of his 35-year career in the Air Force, General Gregory “Speedy’’ Martin returned to his quarters to swap his dress uniform for golf attire. He was ready for his first tee time as a retired four-star general.”

Bender pegged his idea on the 50th anniversary of President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s 1961 farewell address. The five-star general warned of the powerful permanent arms industry unlike the country had ever seen, and he and his aides worried how generals retiring and working for private defense companies would impact democracy.

“His warning was, we need to be aware of this because there may be some power there that may be unchecked,” Bender said. “This powerful industry has this political clout as well as spending power.”

To determine if Bender’s anecdotal observations of this trend were accurate, he, a researcher and a couple of editors who were involved with the story almost daily, needed numbers.

They requested from all four military branches lists of their three- and four-star generals who had retired since 1990, a time when military spending was at historical highs. They then created a database that showed where each went after retiring.

“We got this striking growth of them going from the military to the private industry,” Bender said. “The defense industry has swallowed some of the most senior officers in the military.”

The generals advise the companies on how to pitch their latest weapons or technology to the military for purchase, much the same as Congressional aides go to work for lobbying firms. In some cases they were still being called in by the Pentagon to advise on specialized areas, creating what Bender called, “the potential for insider trading.”

They began to contact some of the retirees directly to put a face on the story rather than simply writing about the numbers, Bender said.

Some didn’t want to talk at all, some would only verify information in their documents, and some who did want to talk left Bender with the impression that this was so common nobody thought twice about it.

The consulting companies doing the hiring were even more unwilling to talk, with no response to dozens of Bender’s requests. Being private companies, they are not under the same obligation as public companies to file information about themselves, meaning he had to rely even more heavily on the generals to provide information.

“It became this accepted process and nobody asked if it was a good thing or a bad thing,” Bender said. “One of the common responses (from generals) was, ‘I’ve been doing this for 40 years, this is what I know.’ ”

Bender also looked at ethics guidelines, or any rules that were in place to dictate behavior of retired generals, and he found that many of these hadn’t been updated in years to account for this new trend. Many generals said they were unprepared for the onslaught.

“The extent to which the military and defense industry had become intertwined and arguably even more of a complex is far greater and far tighter a connection that it was several decades ago,” Bender said. “Some generals would describe retiring and feeling almost like it was an NFL draft from defense companies offering what their new career could be.”

Most reporters will find it difficult to spend eight months on a story, and many newspapers no longer have the resources to provide a researcher who can help create this type of extensive database.

“I credit my editors for seeing this as something different and new and worth investing in me, a researcher, and a couple of editors,” Bender said. “There was an understanding from the get-go that this would take some time and was worth a few months.”

The techniques Bender used to gain information and create a peg for a historical idea can be applied to other types of stories, and finding that peg can be the life or death of a story.

Salvador Rodriguez

This summer has been hit with an epidemic of cybercrime. Hackers all over the world have stood up to the biggest of companies and government organizations, and broken into their systems. This topic has taken over most of the reporting I have done as an intern at the Los Angeles. I’ll even joke that I’m now the hacking beat reporter. So it was a great relief when my editor sent me out to cover a startup company in Los Angeles.

The company, Equipois, makes mechanical arms that help workers in various sectors work for longer periods of time and more safely. My story, “Equipois’ robotic limbs give factory workers and others a hand”, was a profile of the young company. When the story was pitched to me, I knew exoskeletal arms deserved much more than just text on newspaper – it deserved a video.

This would be my  first professional video, so I was a little nervous. However, I recently got some pretty good multimedia training at the Chips Quinn program with the Freedom Forum Diversity Institute. When I started filming, I surprised even myself at my success.

In the end, I’m pretty proud of the video I put together, and I definitely want to embrace that form of story telling more often. Even in business journalism, doing multimedia pieces can provide a more complete story for readers. In this case, my text told the full story, the bits and pieces that just wouldn’t work in a broadcast video, while my video went more in-depth on the visual aspect of what I was trying to explain.

It was a great experience shooting and reporting the story of Equipois, and I hope to do more multimedia business journalism stories while I’m here at the Los Angeles Times.

Summer intern blog compiled by Elvina Nawaguna-Clemente.

Photos by Nick Oza /The Arizona Republic

As the summer heats up in Arizona the debate over the controversial immigration bill, SB 1070, has kept pace.

Federal district court judge  Susan Bolton has until July 29 to make the decision on whether or not the bill is constitutional.  If the bill holds up it will take affect at 12:01 a.m. on July 29.

Bolton’s decision certainly has a much greater impact than the news stories it generates, but the issue certainly is the driving force this week behind coverage for Arizona publications.  The controversy extends to each and every section of coverage.  It has provided a unique opportunity for me this week.

The experience I have had over at The Arizona Republic has been priceless.  I have had the opportunity to cover a number of stories, two of which landed on the front page, which focused on the recovery of the Phoenix economy and the economic impact of losing Tempe Town Lake.  However, as with the majority of day-to-day business coverage my work is done at a desk that receives more than a few phone calls.

However, this week with the expectation of the SB 1070 going into effect, I get to hit the streets to find out exactly how quickly and how dramatically it may impact the Arizona workforce and economy.  While my assignment is only a small share of the extensive coverage that the business section is looking to provide, it is exciting nonetheless.

I will be spending the mornings this week looking at different locations throughout the Valley that generally have day laborers waiting for potential work.  I will be returning to those same locations Thursday morning if the law takes affect to see what the immediate impact is on these workers who are possibly illegal immigrants in the state.

Whether you agree or disagree with the position the judge eventually takes, the impact of her decision will be HUGE.

As we move into an economic recovery, the impact this could have on the state in terms of production, workforce, boycotts, etc. is potentially very damaging.  It will be interesting to see how it plays out.  Be sure to check out azcentral.com throughout the week for evolving coverage on one of the biggest stories of the year.

This coworking space was provided by osmosoft. Photo by Flickr user psd.

The extreme heat rolled into New York City last week and with it came the reminder that the remaining weeks of my internship are running thin.

Before the extreme heat made it almost impossible to lug my camera and tripod around the New York City subway system, I covered a story that got me thinking about the future of the business environment.

When I read about the growing trend of co-working communities, I knew it would be a fun video to do for the business news site I’m working for. Little did I know, it would also help to open new doors in my own creative process.

Sunshine Suites in New York City is one of many co-working communities in cities across the country that offer more than office space to their members. Entrepreneurs I interviewed said they prefer the community a co-working environment offers over working at home or in a rented office space. They enjoy being surrounded by other start-up CEO’s with whom they can collaborate or turn to for advice.

The following week while I was slaving over a BP timeline I had pushed my producer to let me do, I decided to ask for some help from my very talented co-workers.

I have never been one to shy away from admitting my weaknesses and asking for advice, but this time was a bit different. I didn’t feel so protective of my BP package but instead realized that for it to be the best it could be, I would feel all right about putting two names on the byline.

It didn’t really come down to that – I created the package almost completely by myself. But being able to make the shift in my comfort level over co-creating was a small maturation for me inspired by a simple story.

Now that’s what I call getting inspired by your stories.

Reynolds intern Sarah Macdonald (right) interviews Kai Ryssdal (left)

… And it has been an interesting eight weeks.

I’m a Phoenix native, so no moving or adjusting to a new place was required. But working in business is a jump for me.

I’ve covered politics and pubic safety, but business is different than both. I’ve learned more here than in other jobs. I am now more fluent in the language of solar energy, due to an interview with Lane Garrett, CEO of two local solar engineering and distribution companies.

I interviewed Andrew Thomas, Buz Mills and the man who co-invented covered coronary stents, Dr. Richard Heuser. I got to interview Kai Ryssdal in person and put a face to the voice I hear every night at six. And I talked to Kim Quillen, business editor for the Times-Picayune, who has seen her share of crisis coverage.

It’s been a busy few weeks, but I’ve quite enjoyed them. We’ll see what the final two will bring.

Almost everyone here has them, and there’s even a large collage in the kitchen dedicated to cute baby pictures. People take them to sports practices and doctors’ appointments. They get sick. They do cute things. And you have to share these stories and all relevant pictures and videos. It’s important.

By Flickr user dr. motte

In my free time, I think of excuses to give homeless people about why I can’t give them money. I’m trying to find the perfect balance of something believable and something nice. I always say I don’t have money, but I think I can do better than that.

Also in my free time, I go to Big Sur, which is a majestic stretch of coastline that is all misty and peaceful. The cute boy I went with said I was too high-energy for Big Sur and could I please tone it down, and chilll out and stop asking so many questions. But I think Big Sur and I got along just fine. I even lost my phone in Big Sur, and what did Big Sur do? Big Sur gave it back the next day. That’s love.

Photo by Flickr user ojbyrne

After you get your car out of impound, the good thing about San Francisco is you can do some shopping without having to go into stores. Because they all have windows! With lots of displays!! I dig the shops. One of them sells meat for Middle Eastern dishes and another one carries only stuff for people with foot fetishes. I’m waiting for friend to join me before I go in. I mean, you can’t just go marching into foot-fetish stores all alone, even if it is just for curiosity’s sake.

If you are wondering what the internship is like, it’s fun … and very busy. I’ve been covering Canadian stocks and have learned that you don’t even have talk in that Minnesota-type accent to do that. All you have to know is that gold and oil are very important to Canada’s economy. But ice hockey, not so much.

I’ve also been closing a column on U.S. financials stocks and doing a daily column called “Stocks to Watch,” which previews company’s with expected earings reports. I wrote a personal finance story on dividends that was “most popular” one day, and I’m working on a few feature stories on uranium, telecommunicaitons and gold.

I type a lot of percent signs each day — probably 50 but I’ll have to count the exact number tomorrow. I’ll update in the next post. Thumbs up, Marketwatch.

Photo by Flickr user kthypryn

Leaving San Francisco, I had no idea how bad the situation was going to get and I wasn’t sure of the reaction I would find over the whole debacle on the east coast.

A few weeks ago I was relieved to find a huge crowd of protesters outside a BP gas station protesting the oil giant. (Even though these gas stations are franchises and are run by small local business owners, not BP). Seeing people dressed as mermaids pouring black liquids over themselves, I felt right at home … except these people gave even San Franciscan’s a run for their money!

Here at my network, keeping up on the cleanup efforts as well as the economic and environmental devastation in the Gulf has been dominating air time since the moment I arrived here 4 weeks ago.

Even on the business side, our reporters are working diligently to report the many economic and business stories coming out of this. It seems like everyday another bit of truth comes out, or a new piece of information is available, and our energy desk is working hard to stay on-top of it.

I got a piece of the action a few weeks ago when I pitched a story that would show a smaller scale backlash on the energy companies by communities affected by drilling. I went to a small town in upstate New York that sits atop one of the largest natural gas reserves in the United States. The neighborhood is torn apart over whether to drill or not to drill. Some believe it can contaminate drinking water and poison crops, while others believe it will stimulate their economy.

Not only did I get to see upstate New York during the two hour drive and get the opportunity to work with one of our amazingly talented photo journalists, but I got to do what I love: report.

As the oil continues to gush out of the Deepwater Horizon well and I sit back helplessly watching, my package is hopefully expanding people’s knowledge of energy companies and their presence in American communities.

Lawrence O'Donnell is stepping down as President of WM

I worked on my first story at the Houston Chronicle, which wound up on the web and then got printed for today’s paper.  It landed as the centerpiece for Pg 3 of the Biz section – a fine place to start I would say. Waste Management announced that their COO was leaving, so I had to cover that. I talked to their PR, used the terminal, looked at SEC filings, the whole deal. I was actually lucky enough to get to talk to the COO, or ex-COO, himself. It was very much like “24 Days,” but I doubt WM will come crumbling down anytime soon.

Interns are placed at the following organizations:

- Bloomberg News

- CNNMoney.com Video

- Los Angeles Times

- Thomson Reuters

- Phoenix Business Journal

- MarketWatch

- Houston Chronicle

- Arizona Republic

- MSNBC.com

- CNBC