Grant Recipient: Laignee Barron ‘13
Major: English, Middle Eastern Studies Certificate
Organization: New York Daily News
Location: New York, NY
As an intern at the New York Daily News I have the incredible opportunity to work in a busy metro news room. I write for the uptown section of the paper, which focuses on local news in Harlem, East Harlem, Morningside Heights, Inwood, and Washington Heights. This internship has been amazing for allowing me to have the hands-on experience of reporting for a large daily print news outlet.
My first day on the job threw me directly into in-the-field reporting as I was assigned to cover reactions to the Anthony Weiner scandal. From there I have worked on an investigative story looking at the failure of New York Public Housing Authority to respond to work orders in city projects, the unemployed finding a renewed interest in bingo for potential monetary gains, and a story on how the passage of the Marriage Equality Bill will affect the lives of uptown residents. I am also responsible for a weekly series called “best” where I write up the 10 best of something uptown like ethnic bakeries, tattoo parlors, picnic spots, etc.
Working with the news has really stretched me to consider my audience, which affects what articles I pitch to the editor, how I unfold the story, and what tone I write in. Working uptown has also been fantastic at pushing my comfort zone, forcing me to overcome at times a language barrier and in other cases a cultural difference, all in a neighborhood I was previously unfamiliar with.
