Grady InternViews: Caitlin Vinson

This is part of a series where we ask Grady College students to describe their summer internship experience.

Briefly describe your internship and responsibilities.

I am an intern for The Bert Show out of Atlanta. Because of COVID, I am doing my internship virtually at home. Usually, I prepare my three city news headlines (New Orleans, Nashville and Chattanooga) the day before. I will find two articles for each city and summarize them. Then, I will send that Google document to the other intern I am working with. 

The morning of the show, we will email that document to our studio director by 7 a.m. Once the show starts in the mornings at 6 a.m., the other intern and I will work together to index the entire show. This just means we are typing out what the cast on the show is saying. We have to include who is talking, what they say and add time stamps throughout the script. We index until 10 a.m. Then after the show is over, we fix any errors and email it to the studio. 

When I am not indexing or working on city headlines, I submit personal stories about what’s going on in my life every Monday. These personal stories are what helps us get on-air and practice being live.

On Thursdays, we have to submit three to five things that are trending in the world right now. We usually discuss things like beauty, fitness, and videos on TikTok or YouTube. 

What has been the biggest growth you’ve experienced so far?

I think my biggest growth so far is just stepping out of my comfort zone. I never would’ve thought I would be working with a big radio show and getting to go on air. I stepped out of my comfort zone when applying for this job and I continue to step out of my comfort zone each and every day. It is really neat to see the different things I have picked up already just by working with the team for a couple of weeks. 

How do you feel that Grady has prepared you for tackling the job?

I feel like Grady was my first step into getting me out of my comfort zone. I took a leap going into this major and into this industry. Now that I am in it, I want it more than I did before. It has been a dream come true to get to see the things I can only experience here at Grady. My classes and professors have all taught me skills that I will carry with me to any future job. I have found a new appreciation for the hard work that many of these people do on shows like this and just in the industry in general. 

What lessons will you take back with you to Athens in the fall? 

This experience has definitely been one for the books and I am so grateful I got the opportunity to do it. I will be taking my new-found confidence back with me to Athens in the fall. I was so nervous when I started this program at Grady because I thought I would have the hardest time finding my place, but this internship has helped me learn that I am right where I belong. I will be taking all of the knowledge I learned from this internship with me and use it to boost up others in this industry.