Reflecting on a summer internship

When I first met the news staff at the Hungry Horse News, I wasn't sure what to think. I knew I liked the area and I knew I liked the people here.

But after all, I was just the "intern." I knew I needed to prove myself worthy for publication. Quick. For any of us who have ever been new at a company, it can take a couple of months before you get into the groove of things. I only had 10 weeks, and I, a writer, somehow managed to get herself a photography internship.

I did make it to the other side and I'm not sure I'm ready to leave.

Of course I want a vacation. I get two weeks off before school starts, but I'm not sure I want to go back to school. Working has been great, and I actually got to put some money into my pocket, rather than putting money into the University of Montana's pocket.

Although it was a little rough for me at the start, it turns out Richard Hanners and Chris Peterson are pretty good guys and are good at what they do. They are busy. Two people reporting, writing, photographing, designing and editing a paper for a community that runs from Columbia Falls to West Glacier ought to be.

I was new and needed to be introduced to the world of community journalism. It took a couple of weeks to get into the groove of things, but then it was great. They gave me a lot of freedom and it tested my ability to push myself (they also heckled me when I deserved it, but don't worry, I think I started it).

I went through and counted how many of my things made the paper. About 70. A lot were pictures, but there are definitely a slew of articles sprinkled in, too.

At 28 years old and with many different jobs under my belt, I can't even begin to explain to you how proud of myself I am. This is probably slightly cliché, but I am finally doing something that I like, that I actually have a passion for. And it felt good to test it out in the real world.

Getting to know more of the ins and outs of a community, meeting the individuals who make it up, attending events, knowing some of the interesting happenings and some of the not-so-nice happenings. It is, in essence, what makes this job worth it. Telling the stories of people, of businesses and of a community, whether its through pictures or through words, is truly what it's all about.

I know we in the journalism business have a bad rap right now. Generally when I watch the news, I can see why and I even have a tendency to feel that way myself. But I also know that feeling is what spurned me to get into this business.

I can tell you it is challenging to keep the bias out of a story. It can be hard to ask the right questions that find out what someone is really saying, to find out where the truth lies. And when you sit down to write it in an understandable way, making the story reveal that truth and using the point-of-view from those who told you the story - in as few words as possible - is even harder.

I learned more in this summer of working than I did in the last two years of school. And while I have learned a lot in school and will learn more in my last semester, it's just not the same.

I guess I want to say thanks. Its been a good summer.

Camillia Lanham was the 2011 summer intern at the Hungry Horse News.