Radio
Intern Learns, It's All About the Story
Growing up in Brunswick,
Maine, Matthea Daughtry ’09
recalls a constant stream of National Public Radio (NPR)
programs lacing the air. Prairie Home Companion, Car
Talk and All Things Considered were a regular
part of her life.
Matthea Daughtry, WFCR intern, on the air. |
So last winter, when she saw an internship at WFCR, the
Amherst NPR affiliate, advertised in the Career Development
Office, she went for it.
“It was one of the best experiences I ever had,” said
Daughtry recently, after completing the spring-semester internship
and collecting her Smith diploma. “The highlight was
seeing inside NPR. My family members are huge NPR fans, and
it was wonderful to meet these amazing people working at
an NPR station.”
Daughtry wrapped up the WFCR
internship with a duo of radio interviews with Smith seniors
(now graduates) and , who discussed their aspirations
after leaving Smith.
“I put a lot into those pieces,” she
said. The interviews aired on WFCR in the heavily trafficked
morning slots on May 14 and 15, just before commencement
weekend.
Conducting radio interviews
was nothing new for Daughtry. She joined Smith’s student radio station, WOZQ 91.9,
her first year here and founded the station’s news
department, which she expanded through her senior year. As
part of her job there, she sought out interviews with high-profile
visitors to the area, such as Gloria Steinem ’56 and
comedian Paula Poundstone.
Daughtry’s interest
in media encompasses the visual as well as audio. A studio
art major focusing on photography, she worked as a photojournalist
for her hometown newspaper, the Times-Record, for several years. But she had
been interested in radio long before coming to Smith.
“I eat, sleep and breathe radio,” she said. “I’ve
always known I wanted to do radio.”
At WFCR, Daughtry gained
a host of skills necessary for that career goal. “They taught me the ropes,” she
said, such as editing and writing for radio under deadline,
and how to best use a microphone during interviews.
Most importantly, Daughtry learned how to effectively convey
a story, whether the subject is serious or light. She produced
an enterprise segment early during her internship on the
affordability of birth control for Five-College students.
And as one of her final projects, WFCR sent her out for random
interviews to teach her how to engage people and craft sound
for a simple assignment.
Daughtry hopes to return to the Pioneer Valley in the fall,
ideally to continue working in radio.
“At WFCR, they gave me the ability to appreciate the
whole story, how to tell a story instead of just reporting
the news, no matter what it’s
about,” she said. “It’s all about the story.”
|
