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Monthly Archives: December 2017
CNN Reflection
A new perspective at CNN
By Donecia Reed
October 11, 2017 11:52 p.m. ET
This CNN logo made of license plate numbers stands proudly outside of the newsroom.
The Cable News Network (CNN) represents the gold standard of news coverage and success for many journalism students. As an Atlanta resident, I have toured the CNN headquarters many times. Normally, a visitor sees news studios and journalists in the newsroom from a distance. But on Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2017, I took a behind-the-scenes tour with Monte Plott, CNN digital news editor, that changed my perspective on how news works.
During Plott’s tour, I stood in the midst of a newsroom full of journalists who didn’t have the time to pay attention to me. Some of them were sitting at their desks, answering emails and looking up information, while others were up pacing and jotting ideas down, lending new meaning to thinking on your feet.
“The only thing we (journalists) have going for us is credibility,” says CNN Digital News Editor Monte Plott. “If we lose that — if we get things wrong, doesn’t matter why or how we got them wrong, just that we screwed up — then we’re out of business.”
I witnessed journalists in the business, working hard to get it right.
Professional Bio
Donecia Reed
Donecia Reed is a Journalism major at Georgia State University (GSU) with a passion for effective communication. Through her fascination with words, she aims to use public relations to help clients and their audiences forge stronger connections.
Raised in Stone Mountain, Georgia, Reed has spent most of her life in the Atlanta area. She is familiar with the city and its culture – and intends to use that knowledge to improve nonprofits.
For three years, Reed has worked as an editorial assistant in the GSU Honors College. Her job entails creating and updating the weekly newsletter, managing social media accounts and writing student features to post on the college’s webpage.
Because of Reed’s connections with journalism faculty and the Honors College, she traveled to Ecuador to work as a public relations consultant to Instituto San José de Calasanz, a nonprofit organization based in Cuenca. Instituto San José de Calasanz caters to students with mental and physical disabilities. Reed helped to create a public relations plan that spread awareness about the organization locally, earned donations, and increased social media presence. Three of five goals have been achieved since the plan was implemented.
Outside of school and work, Reed participates in several student organizations on campus. She is the president of Redeemed Gospel Choir and is a student ambassador for the Honors College and the Office of the President. She is active in her church and volunteers with senior centers across Atlanta.