Joseph completed an internship at NPR in Washington, D.C. during Fall 2016. Afterwards, she was hired by The Undefeated, a website owned by ESPN, in Washington, D.C. for Spring 2017. In her internship spotlight, Joseph speaks mostly about her time at NPR, but also touches on her transition to The Undefeated and her internship responsibilities there.
Q: Why did you choose to apply to NPR and how did you get the position? Could you elaborate on what your position is and what your responsibilites are?
A: I applied to NPR after a random LinkedIn interaction with Doug Mitchell. We were discussing my work with NEPR Youth Media Lab when he encouraged me to apply to NPR. I reluctantly applied at the last minute, not thinking I’d get a national internship. It turned out I was wrong. My prior experience working at UMass Facilities & Campus Services was perhaps the best education for me. I worked under communications manager Jim Hunt, who taught me how to work in a business environment as well as how to use dozens of software that came in handy during the application process. Working for him for almost two years was perhaps the best thing I ever did. In addition to that, I took Professor Greeley Kyle’s classes. He was by far the toughest professor, but the skills and work ethic I learned were important. Yes, I learned how to edit, but in his class I learned whether journalism is what I want to do in life—luckily, the answer was yes.
At NPR, I was responsible for running the studio for LIVE hits and pre-tapes, booking guests, pitching stories, writing the DACS lines for stories, writing scripts and pulling and editing tape.
The Undefeated was a great second experience in Washington, D.C. Here, I’m involved in all aspects of The Undefeated. I’m responsible for pitching and executing story ideas, managing the website, helping with podcasts, contributing to meetings and pushing the content on my own social media pages. This feels more like being an actual writer for The Undefeated than it does being an intern, which is very important. One of the most important things I did prior to this internship was maintain a good rapport with my coworkers from NPR as well as journalists I’ve met around D.C. Also, having a mentor was another important thing for me, especially in furthering my career as a journalist.
Q: Could you tell us about an important piece you worked on at NPR? How did you tackle it and overcome any journalistic challenges?
A: The most important thing I worked on was Here & Now’s post-election day coverage. It was challenging for me because of the nature of the election—I was disappointed in the outcome, yes, but more so was scared being a black woman and a journalist. Here & Now did a four-hour live coverage and I had to be at work. I imagine a lot of journalists felt like I did, but at NPR I experienced a level of professionalism and for the first time got to see what it means to be a journalist. Even on the tough days, you have to get out of bed and do your job so that was really important for me to see.
Q: What was the biggest piece of advice you learned in the classroom that helped you succeed at NPR?
A: Learning how to edit and use different software in Professor Greeley Kyle’s B1 class was honestly the single most important thing I did to set myself up for not just this internship, but also NEPR Youth Media lab and now for The Undefeated. As far as NPR goes, very few people are actual reporters…it’s a much tougher road. However, if you know how to edit to the ear, your skills become that much more marketable not just at NPR, but a lot of places. Knowing how to produce your own work is pretty much invaluable.
Q: How did the election influence your work at NPR?
A: I was pulled aside by my mentor Doug Mitchell the day of the post-election coverage. I pretty much was floating around the office even after I was off because I didn’t want to go outside. The mood in D.C., a relatively fun and friendly place, was not the D.C. I knew for the past couple of months. Doug spoke to me about this being my first political defeat and explained how much more important my job as a journalist had just gotten. He encouraged me to go out and talk to people who voted for Trump, people in the parts of this country it seemed like the Democratic party didn’t reach. He challenged me to be vigilant in my reporting on Donald Trump and to pretty much “buckle up” for the fight of my professional life. It was really important and reassuring to hear, especially from an NPR legend.
Q: How did your time at NPR, and your career goals, lead you to pursue an internship with The Undefeated?
A: Being at NPR was great because it forced me to understand international news, something I usually brushed off. That was one of the best things about my internship. During my time there, I sort of campaigned for the idea of NPR getting a thoughtful sports podcast. Pretty much everyone in NPR knew I was the sports girl. At this point in time, The Undefeated was new. A few media professionals in the area highly recommended I reach out to The Undefeated and one of them put me in touch with a big-time editor there. I pretty much relentlessly emailed her until she invited me to the office. At this point I had already applied for the internship, but having the opportunity to put a face to a name was very important for me. Luckily my impression stuck, I interviewed for the internship and was hired. I was really excited about this internship because I felt like, and still feel like, there isn’t anything I can’t try at The Undefeated. I’ve been involved in podcasts and even writing pieces for the web. One of my stories, the first one I pitched, actually was the lead story on the site, which was pretty cool.
Q: How will your learning experiences at NPR carry over at The Undefeated? How have these experiences shaped your goals for this new position?
A: At NPR I learned to be vigilant in what I report but to still be thought-provoking. Every piece I pitch, whether it’s serious or humorous, I hope still has that element that I learned from NPR. I feel like NPR allowed me to understand the basics and The Undefeated is actually allowing me to apply those things in my own pieces. The two internships worked very well together as I’ve learned a lot from both.