Anna Barnes was an environmental reporting intern at NPR affiliate Michigan Public in collaboration with the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation and the Knight Center for Environmental Journalism at Michigan State University.

By Anna Barnes

As I wrap up my Knight Center summer internship at Michigan Public, I can say the experience was necessary and fulfilling. I am leaving the newsroom in Ann Arbor more prepared for my future career and for my last semester in the master’s program here at Michigan State University.

My internshipwas fully in-person and it showed me what a professional newsroom 9-5 experience is like. I went into the internship having no experience in radio and now I feel I could confidently work at any station. Some of my family and friends would call me just to tell me they just heard me talking through their car speakers, so that was definitely a highlight of the summer.

Working in the office also set me up for success in my last semester of college as my professional project will require me to spend hours in the office producing and editing a documentary. I am also no longer worried about audio editing because that’s one skill I got to focus on this summer.

I previously believed I would look for a remote job after college, but this internship convinced me there is value in coming into the office a couple of days a week as I met so many great people and mentors. My editors helped me through tough stories and pushed my reporting to be more clear so I could communicate effectively with audiences. I also learned how to take 1,000-word web stories and create 45-second radio pieces with them. The medium was different from what I’m used to, but this internship showed me how the basic rules in journalism can be used in every format.

I appreciated the freedom Michigan Public gave me to do professional work while still supporting me when I needed help. I was able to produce more than 20 stories I’m proud of through the internship. I felt like an important part of the newsroom and got to do all kinds of writing that fell under the environmental umbrella. My work can be read here.

Anna Barnes