Media students tour Philadelphia Inquirer, Washington D.C.

Four students and a professor from Baker University’s KNBU-TV and KNBU-FM broadcast media stations attended the 2016 College Broadcasters National Student Electronic Media Convention Oct. 20-22 in Philadelphia, where they attended sessions and lectures dedicated to a variety of topics including news coverage, social media, and legal issues. Department of Mass Media and Visual Arts Chair Joe Watson accompanied students Josh Chalker, Jessica Georgie, Krista Porter, and Reece Loridon on the trip.

While in Philadelphia, the group took a personalized tour of the Philadelphia Inquirer offices and sat in on an editorial meeting led by Baker alumus and Pulitzer Prize-winner Harold Jackson. Jacskon, who graduated from Baker in 1975, has served as the paper’s editorial page editor since 2007. He received the Pulitzer Prize for editorial writing in 1991 and has been recognized throughout his career with numerous honors including the Philadelphia Association of Black Journalists Trailblazer Award and the Journalist of the Year award from the National Association of Black Journalists.

“Having a Baker alum give you a personal tour and allow you to sit in on their editorial meeting was an unforgettable experience,” senior Jessica Georgie said. “It really showed me that Baker’s family goes above and beyond for you, and I hope one day I am giving some students from my alma mater a tour of my office.”

Over the same weekend, The Baker Orange student newspaper staff members Sarah Baker, Nathalia Barr, and Dory Smith attended the Associated Collegiate Press National College Media Convention in Washington, D.C., along with Associate Professor of Mass Media Dave Bostwick. The Orange staff toured the interactive news and media museum, the Newseum; listened to keynote speeches by famed Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward and Freedom of the Press Foundation board member Edward Snowden; and received the second-place award in the Best-of-Show division for four-year university newspapers that publish less than once per week.

The broadcasting students’ immersive experience at the Inquirer is just one example of the experiential learning opportunities available to Baker students outside of the traditional classroom, and the Orange’s award is the latest in a tradition of recognition earned by Baker mass media students, including 14 consecutive All-Kansas awards at Kansas Collegiate Media conferences and national recognition from the Society of Professional Journalists and the Associated Collegiate Press.

For more information about student experiences and opportunities in Baker’s mass media program, visit bakerU.edu/mass-media.