My Journalism Journey
Everyone’s career path looks a little different. Some people go to college with no plan, no passion. For me, I realized exactly what I wanted to do at age 15 and oh what a journey it’s been!
The story starts way back in my childhood. I was always a performer. I grew up doing dance, singing, and being part of theater productions. I always loved being on stage and presenting myself to an audience.
Those passions continued all the way until high school, where I found myself in an introductory journalism class. I had no idea what journalism really was when I started. My family never really watched the news and I was too young to care what was going on in the world. Part of the class was writing news, entertainment, and sports articles, which was fun coming from someone who has always enjoyed writing. The other part was the weekly broadcast that shared news and information with everyone in the school. Because of my experience in theater, I was picked to be on the first broadcast of the year. We prepared all week writing scripts, taking video, and making graphics for the perfect show. My teacher, who soon became my mentor, made little freshman Katie feel so prepared and excited to share news with the school. Friday morning came and I sat down in front of the camera. I had the most incredible rush and excitement, just like I did before opening night of a play. That moment set the tone for the rest of my life.
I soon became the lead anchor of the broadcast and packed my high school schedule with as many journalism and video production classes as possible.
When it came time to look for colleges, there was only one path in my mind. I loved the opportunities I had in high school to do interviews and film videos at big events and sports games. Once I realized that could be my career, I was sold. I wanted to be a news reporter and no one could stop me.
Quinnipiac University became home the second I walked onto campus and saw the television studio on my first ever college tour. This is where I wanted to be.
Once freshman year kicked off, I immediately joined Q30 Television. I eagerly jumped into action on the Newscast show, a weekly 30 minute news broadcast covering QU and the Hamden community. I met students with the same passion and drive as me and thrived under the pressure of producing a show every Wednesday night. I started off my Q30 roles as a Hamden beat reporter, then an Associate Producer, and before I knew it, I was the Executive Producer of the show.
It gave me a taste of what working in news was really like, but that taste became a mouthful in May of 2022. I landed an internship at WFSB Channel 3 in Hartford, Connecticut, where I spent days writing stories for the evening news and going out with reporters to shadow them on their daily stories.
Three weeks into my internship, I was asked to stay and become a news producer. I was trained to work with reporters, pick stories for each newscast, write them, and put it on-air. My dreams felt like they were coming true. I spent a year working part time when I wasn’t in class or at Q30.
When it came time for graduation, I was offered a full time job producing. I accepted immediately because I knew it would help me on my path to success. Now, almost nine months later, I spend every weekday producing the 4 p.m. news. Producing is exciting and I have so much creative freedom while sharing important information with the community.
What comes next for me? Well, there’s another graduation a few months away. After that, 15-year-old Katie’s dreams of becoming a news reporter will be coming true. Long hours and overnight shifts will be made up for by the rush of going on-air every day. Some days to keep people safe, others to give them a laugh or keep them entertained. It’s been a goal seven years in the making, and it’s finally about to happen.
Yes, there have been struggles and days where I’ve thought to myself “what am I doing with my life?,” but every time I have a doubt, I look back at this broadcast and say “I’m doing it for her.”