Grady Intern Diaries: Allie Bailey
This is part of a series documenting the internship experiences of Grady students this past summer.
Name: Allie Bailey
Major: Broadcast Journalism
Title of Internship: Sports Broadcast Intern with FOX 5 Sports
Company and company website: FOX 5 Atlanta
Location: Atlanta, Georgia
Responsibilities:
• Traveling to location sites when covering games, interviewing story subjects, or filming live shots at sporting events.
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• Editing film and creating V/O SOTs and packages for the station.
• Maintaining social media for “FOX 5 Sports” and “High 5 Sports.”
• Interviewing story subjects during location visits.
• Brainstorming story ideas for the later blocks of the sports show (10 p.m. and 11 p.m. segments).
• Conducting an ongoing blog about my time as an intern that is published on the FOX 5 Atlanta website.
Grady College: What is the biggest challenge you faced during your internship?
Allie Bailey: The unpredictability of the job. Broadcasting is a career that can swing you in the most random directions. No plans are ever definite. This applies to not only the stories you try to run, but also the amount of time you are working. There is a certain weight of uncertainty when attempting to make a schedule, and at times that could be discerning. However, it is a part of the job and it is only one of a very few setbacks to abide by. Though it is a challenge, it is one that can be conquered if you learn how to be flexible.
GC: What was the best part about your summer internship?
A.B.: Hands down the incredible opportunities I was given. Working sports in a city like Atlanta definitely has its perks. It's not every day that you get to throw footballs with the Atlanta Falcons rookies, sit in the Braves dugout prior to a game, rally points with professional tennis players or observe an Olympic team diving practice. As both an athlete and an aspiring reporter, I couldn't think of any better experiences than the ones I had this summer. Those were just a few experiences of many I had and those were memories I will never forget.
GC: What advice would you give to a student looking for an internship?
A.B.: Don't be afraid to expand your horizons when looking for an internship. At the end of the day, you can't lose. Whether you intern for a large-based network or a local station, you're still getting that experience and those connections that are so important in the broadcast industry. We're all in the process of finding our niches, so don't feel like you can only pursue one certain kind of internship in order to find your path.
GC: What part of your Grady education did you find most valuable during your internship?
A.B.: Grady prepared me most for my internship with a combination of instruction and extracurricular activities. The Grady courses definitely set a solid foundation in order for you to be successful at any given internship. Being able to edit, shoot film or conduct a proper interview are true assets in the field that can really come in handy for internships. But looking back on this summer, I felt as though the extracurricular activities that Grady offers had helped me as well. That's because volunteering for things like Grady NewSource or the Grady Sports Bureau are going to give students the true outside experience they need to learn and apply their skills. At the end of the day, Grady might grant the knowledge through courses, but it's super important to learn how to apply it in the activities the school offers.
GC: When you look back on your internship 10 years from now, what part of your summer internship do you expect to be most thankful for?
A.B.: How the FOX 5 Sports department made it their prerogative to help me succeed. They allowed me infinite opportunities not only for exposure, but to really get out of my comfort zone in order to learn more. Though I could have easily gotten lost in the mix of the station's busy schedule, I honestly felt as though I was a priority. I was able to gain all of the experience and encouragement in the world thanks to this station.
Date: July 25, 2016Contact: Allie Bailey, alliejb@uga.edu