Multimedia Storytelling at USA TODAY

By Dean’s Intern Ellie Hartleb at USA TODAY

The past six weeks at USA TODAY have brought plenty of learning experiences along with some exciting opportunities for editing, reporting and writing. Since joining the editorial team in January, I have become accustomed to the fast-paced environment of a national newsroom and the team work that goes into printing a daily paper.

At USA TODAY, I spend most of my time fact-checking contributed columns and adding multimedia elements to online stories. While these tasks can sometimes be painstaking, completing them every day has opened my eyes to the essential behind-the-scenes work that goes into each and every story. Multimedia production is another huge part of my job, and I am usually working on at least one such project each week. One of my favorite regular assignments is working on “Ask USA TODAY” videos, in which I recruit someone from the USA TODAY network to answer a reader-submitted question on camera. I am also responsible for editing and posting the film, which gives me a lot of creative freedom.

In addition to my digital work, I also had the privilege to write an editorial for the print and online editions of the paper. In typical newspaper fashion, I reported, wrote and edited the story on a very tight deadline, and the entire team worked together to make the piece the best it could be. Seeing my byline in print has been the most rewarding aspect of the job thus far, and I can’t wait to see what the next six weeks hold.