The Knight News Internship Positions in English

An internship with The Knight News will offer an opportunity to work in a professional environment, developing knowledge and experience about the editorial and institutional practices involved with the publication of a newspaper—in this case, one that publishes bi-monthly as well as publishing breaking stories online in the interim. The Knight News offers Reporter Internships, Social Media / Marketing / Community Relations Interns, Digital Content Creation Interns, and Design Interns. All interns will be expected to write at least one article per issue (every two weeks) and a total of nine for the semester (so two articles for some issues). They will be required to meet deadlines, work with a team of editors, and staff writers to develop their reporting skills as well as others particular to the internship assignment.

All students completing internships for credit will post bi-weekly reflections on their work to a shared blog and assemble a portfolio of their work with a prefatory essay before the end of the semester.

Note: Interns may receive course credit in English (no matter what their majors) or may seek credit within their majors by contacting the Department Chairs or Internship Coordinators in relevant departments.

Credits internship course in English will count toward the new Minor in Writing that will launch Fall 2021. In addition, students who are eligible for Federal Work Study will be paid $15 / hour for the internship.

Learning Goals

Upon completion of a semester program, all interns will have learned the following:

·          To report confidently on subject matters in an accurate and concise manner.

·          To develop familiarity—and expertise—with the practices of a professional news   environment, or news room.

·          To write in collaboration with editors and copyeditors, developing familiarity with norms and conventions common to journalism across subgenres, beats, and mediums.

Reporter Internship

Reporting interns are responsible for producing content for a specific journalistic beat and developing the skills and relationships particular to that beat (e.g., national news, QC news, social justice, sports, culture, entertainment). Students enrolling will be required to write a minimum of 3 articles per issue, with at least 1 of the 3 articles contributing to their assigned beat.

Learning Goals:

·          To gain a critical awareness with assigned readings on the concept of journalistic beats and the experience of seasoned journalists who write about their beats.

·          To conduct research on assigned beats, including reflection pieces written by journalists who work that beat and contextual materials important to it.

·          To develop relationships with members of the college community whose experience and expertise particular to the assigned beat.

Social Media, Marketing, and Community Relations Internship

Students looking to enroll in this style of internship will be responsible for coordinating outreach and promotion on behalf of The Knight News—curating social media initiatives to keep the community informed, working with the Communications office to publicize the paper, and outreach to local business and organizations to generate ad revenue.

Learning Goals

·          To develop expertise in social media practices that expand the paper’s audience and encourage community engagement.

·          To establish professional working relationships with college staff.

·          To gain familiarity with the norms and practices of an institutional Communications office.

·          To practice outreach to businesses and community organizations and to persuade their leadership to become stakeholders in the paper and the college.

·          To create content that appeals to multiple audiences.

Digital Content Creation

Digital content creation interns will work on video production, audio production, and/or graphic design. They will work closely with the Editor-in-Chief and faculty advisor to expand the digital reach of the paper.

Learning goals

·          To practice the conventions of digital storytelling particular to various media.

·          To develop critical awareness with assigned readings on digital literacy and digital content creation.

·          To gain expertise and agility with software and platforms particular to audio production, video production, web development, and/or graphic design.

·          To produce at least one digital project published by The Knight News.

Design Intern

Design interns will be involved with all design tasks necessary for the production and promotion of The Knight News—including layout, illustration, advertising, social media, and website development.

Learning goals

·          To practice and implement principles of design common to online and print journalistic publications.

·          To communicate principles of design with the paper’s editorial staff.

·          To develop and refine design elements of social media campaigns.

·          To learn the fundamentals of Wordpress and coordinate paper’s web design with its PDF and print corollaries.

·          To create digital flyers for events and announcements.

·          To work as a member of a team, communicating professionally and meeting deadlines.

·          To gain enough experience to take the lead on design initiatives.