by Kaitlin Van Loon
Twelve students had the opportunity to report on the Iowa caucuses Feb. 1-3. They made connections with news organizations, photographers and multimedia journalists from all over the country and world. CoJMC faculty members Jill Martin, Olga Pierce and John Shrader accompanied the students.
Senior broadcasting major Lauren Nunez attended the trip as part of the CoJMC News Lab. She wanted to get a better idea of how to package together stories on the fly with the help of her professors.
“I also think it helped me improve my skills because it gave me the opportunity to face some fears and just go out and talk to new people, while also having the creative freedom to create the story I wanted,” Nunez said.
Students reported caucus updates through the Nebraska News Service with continuous articles, videos, social media and photography updates on its website and social media accounts.
Senior fisheries and wildlife conservation biology and journalism major Carlee Koehler said that while covering the caucus, it was important to go with the flow because things didn't exactly go as planned.
“I had to keep searching for where the story was when things seemed to be at a stand-still, even if the story was in how everything was falling apart,” she said.
The coverage of the Iowa caucuses wouldn’t have been possible without donations from CoJMC alumni. In addition, faculty willingness to help students learn about the industry in real time is another reason students are able to “do from day one”.
Senior journalism major John Eirinberg’s most memorable moment was when he worked on a live standup with Nunez.
“I was talking about the app being used to report votes. I had just read about it on the New York Times blog. A newscaster asked me where I was getting my information. I was surprised that a professional was asking me how I figured something out,” Eirinberg said. “I would definitely take part in an event like that again. It was stressful, at times, frustrating and a lot of fun.”
The following students attended Iowa caucuses:
Bassey Arikpo
Mia Azizah
Jose Casarin
John Eirinberg
Kenneth Ferriera
Carlee Koehler
Seth Marshall
Denise Munoz
Lauren Nunez
Lincoln Shafer
Monica Uzpen
Michael Wilson
