A word to clout chasers

I have always despised clout chasers. The conversations with Soraya McDonald and The Athletic reminded me about that although none of them chase clout. I intern at a small, community journalism online news publication, Spectacular Magazine, that covers African-Americans in The Triangle. We have a specific niche audience. Nobody is coming to Spectacular for breaking news on the national beats I cover such as Duke and North Carolina men’s basketball, which I learned quickly when I saw the analytics. I also learned comparing myself to the other local journalists is a bad idea, because I juggle way more hats than at a game. But the good thing about starting small at a community journalism outlet in a crazed sports area like The Triangle is that I have received ample opportunities to get better. I consistently play the role of photographer, writer and editor. Before I went home for spring break, I covered nine games in nine days, in four different cities spanning 75 miles – during finals week. However, this came at the price of not learning how to work a beat since I have covered 10 teams at 4 different schools last season, 4 of those on a consistent basis. Doing the little things, preparation and starting small were the common themes from yesterday’s speakers. Covering Duke-North Carolina at Cameron Indoor is cool, but, by-far, it was not my favorite game. I don’t care where my first job out of college is as long as I’m in an environment where I’m learning from great journalists.