Fellowship at WNYC- my first week
The first week at my #ChicasPoderosas #dowjones #icfj fellowship has gone by and this is what happened.
On my first story, I wrote a little bit about how I ended up in New York City working alongside with the DataNews Team at WNYC. Now it’s been a week since I came here and since I started my Dow Jones fellowship, and all I can say is: it keeps getting better.
First impressions
I arrived at this big building located on Varick St. in NYC and was welcomed by Jenny from the Data News Team. She introduced me to people around the floor (because WNYC has 3 floors inside the building) and I kept thinking “how cool is this place”. Then she introduced me to the people in her team and finally they gave me my own space to work side by side with them.
The first few days were a little slow, mostly because every reporter is covering a different story and they are all very focused on getting their stories out. Jenny pointed out that I would be developing a product to cover a story about gerrymandering. And yes, I had the same look on my face when I heard that word.
Politics 101
Gerrymandering. Efficiency gap. Two terms that have been constantly present on my mind during the past few days. At first it was a challenge to understand them and become familiar with the whole ‘politics 101’ lessons. But as I did more research, it all got easier to understand.
I also tried not to get “too familiar” with the subject because I consider it being an advantage and here’s why: by seeing it from a “outsider’s” perspective it helps me create a product that is more accesible and can reach different audiences, from politicians to normal citizens like me with little or barely any knowledge about the term and what it means.
Hustle!
Since the clock is ticking, and the product that we’re developing requires A LOT of work (and time to do it), I’m seeing some very busy upcoming days. But the whole experience: being in New York, walking around the city like a new yorker, working with amazing people from different backgrounds, and learning about all the work and collaboration it takes to create digital media products, has been mind blowing.
