Intern Spotlight: Cassandra Crockett

Cassandra Crockett had never written for a daily newspaper, that is, until this past summer.

For 10 weeks, as part of an internship sponsored by the Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism, Crockett had the chance to jump on the business desk of a metro newspaper – The Salt Lake Tribune. She was one of seven students from universities around the country chosen for the Reynolds Center internship program, which places aspiring business journalists at major publications.

A junior at Yale University, Crockett spent the summer months tackling both breaking news stories and researching in-depth pieces for the paper. The experience, she said, was invaluable and taught her about the inner-workings of a newspaper.

Below, Crockett shares some of the highlights from her summer at The Salt Lake Tribune.

What did you focus on at The Salt Lake Tribune and what was the environment like on the business desk?
During my time at paper, I wrote a variety of stories, ranging from a snappy, graphical analysis of the science behind fireworks to a spotlight on the “buy local” movement in Salt Lake City to an in-depth look at Utah’s faulty regulation of construction equipment.

I’d wondered whether, as the intern, I’d be given only the stories that no one else wanted to cover, but my editors gave me the opportunity to write meaningful (not to mention plentiful) articles.  They were even daring enough to give me a late-breaking story on my first day!  And that risk was representative of the environment at the paper; above all else, my editors and co-workers wanted to see me succeed.

Which stories are you most proud of from your time at the paper? Why?
It was fun to have the occasional A1 story, but the pieces that I’m most proud of are my longer weekenders. One profile in particular required weeks of research, especially after we found that one source had not been entirely forthcoming. In many ways, that article taught me how to report; I learned which questions to always ask, how to sift through court documents, even how to pull in anonymous sources and phrase sensitive legal information. Yes, writing quick analyses of breaking news is a hugely important skill to have, but the work that I put into intricate, longer stories yielded a much higher reward.

What skills were you able to enhance while working at the paper and what valuable lessons did you learn?
Having never written for a daily newspaper prior to my internship at The Salt Lake Tribune, perhaps my biggest lesson was how to adapt my writer’s voice to fit a more “breaking news” style.  But solidifying my grasp on that skill opened up a whole new realm of opportunity. In addition to improving my writing, the internship actually showed me what it’s like to write for a major metro publication. That I can comfortably say that I understand the lifestyle of a reporter is an enormous step forward; the entire industry has been demystified for me. Getting hands-on experience in business journalism gave me the opportunity to spend 10 weeks living in my career path—a rare gift for college students.

What advice do you have for other beginning business journalists?
Get an internship exactly like this one. The environment in a professional newsroom is completely different from what I’d expected, and you cannot hope to understand it until you’ve lived in it for at least a few weeks.  Also, make sure that your first job allows for a lot of writing with a caring editor; the editing and assignment processes have huge impacts on your confidence and efficacy as a reporter.

And, the best decision I made this summer was to bring in massive amounts of my grandmother’s coffee (she’s a farmer in Kona).  Bonding with your co-workers quickly—and there will be some memorable characters in your office, I’m sure—does more for your day-to-day happiness than anything else.

The Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism is accepting applications for its summer 2009 business journalism internships for university students. For more information click here.