The Making of a Young Reporter
Sarah Hammond has always been interested in the field of journalism. She attended high school at Stratford Academy in Macon, Georgia. During her last year of high school, Hammond did her senior internship under Ed Grisamore at The Macon Telegraph. This is where Hammond was able to first gain experience in the journalism world. After high school, Hammond took her interest a step further while attending the College of Charleston. She worked for the school’s TV station, CisternYard Media, as a reporter.
“That was my first time shooting interviews and writing scripts for a package,” says Hammond. This was when she realized she enjoyed broadcast journalism more than print.
“I personally feel like its more to the point and I like having visuals to go along with it,” says Hammond.
Hammond soon transferred to The University of Georgia where she began taking classes at Grady School of Journalism and Mass Communication and volunteering for Grady Newsource on campus. This past summer, Hammond had the opportunity to intern with the local Macon TV station, 13WMAZ. She worked as an intern reporter under the news director, Lorra Lynch Jones.
“She treated me like any other employee as the internship went on to make sure I was getting the full experience,” says Hammond. Not only was Hammond a reporter for 13WMAZ, she also got the full experience of packing and creating scripts for head anchor, Frank Malloy, to read on air.

Hammond soon learned from her new boss that an internship in journalism will make or break your decision about going into the field. College media sources are vastly different from professional news sources. College media is typically more relaxed, while the stakes are high in a professional setting.
“You can’t afford to mess up at a place like 13WMAZ because people will notice, so that puts some pressure on you to go get interviews and meet your deadlines,” Hammond says.
Hammond and the rest of the 13WMAZ news team go about finding their story ideas in a variety of ways.
“Most of the reporters have an area like Dublin or Milledgeville, or a topic like education or commissioners. It makes it easier to look for and actually find stories when you have something to zone in on,” says Hammond.
Because of the many ways they find stories in different ways, they also verify their information in different ways. They ask many different sources about information that the news team acquires. They also sort through documents and public records.
“We can also make FOIA requests if certain people or organizations don’t want to give us the info on their own. There’s always a way to get the info you need, and you better make sure its right before you publish or air anything,” says Hammond.
Aside from the pressures of her internship, Hammond enjoyed it. Hammond’s favorite aspect of reporting is meeting new and interesting people in her community that she has resided in for 22 years. She is interested in participating in political reporting in the future, but always loves human interest pieces because she gets to meet and interview with different types of people. By reporting in her hometown, Hammond has learned to avoid bias in different situations and interviews as well.
“I did interview a few people that I knew personally. I just had to make sure I didn’t edit them or frame them in a biased light,” says Hammond.
Hammond also enjoys the thrill of finding stories in the area because she also gets to learn more about her hometown of Macon. After a stormy, tornado filled day, Hammond was sent out to cover some of the wreckage in the area. She was directed to a house almost completely decimated by giant trees.
“I ended up being the only one to interview the woman who lived there, and she had a really emotional story to tell. When it aired that night, we realized that I was the only one to find that house. It just made me feel like I had done something important,” says Hammond.
It is stories like these that push Hammond to report further about untold stories in her community and possibly more communities in the near future.
The Elements of Journalism Questions:
Q: Who did you work for at 13WMAZ and how have your mentors prepared you for your future career?
A: “I worked as a news intern under Lorra Lynch Jones, the news director. She was very hands on with me and would always give me feedback about my work. She treated me like any other employee as the internship went on to make sure I was getting the full experience because she always told me that an internship will make or break your decision about going into journalism.”
Q: How do you verify the information you acquire?
A: “We verify our information by asking multiple sources and not just going with the first person who tipped us off on something. We call sheriffs, or PR people or dig into documents and records to make sure we have the information correct. We can also make FOIA requests if certain people or organizations don’t want to give us the info on their own. There’s always a way to get the info you need, and you better make sure it’s right before you publish or air anything.”
Q: Since you’re from Macon, has is been hard to hide your bias during certain stories or situations?
A: “Sometimes it was hard, like I said [before], but for the most part, I was never working on anything highly politicized or controversial. I did interview a few people that I knew personally, I just had to make sure I didn’t edit them or frame them in a biased light.”