By KEVIN DU and ARELIS HERNANDEZ
The UNITY News Online

Famed broadcast journalist Walter Cronkite’s relationship with his high school journalism professor Fred Birney cradled his growth in a budding industry.

Finding the right mentor is indispensible to a journalist’s career, panelists at a mentorship reception said. It could mean the difference between small-market confinement and network glory, they said.

KNBC anchor Mekahlo Medina said the need for mentors has not diminished.

“If you don’t have mentors that help guide you on how to not only craft journalism, but to maneuver within an organization, then you’ll likely never grow as a journalist,” he said.

Medina was one of the many experienced journalists who attended the discussion, which was hosted by NBC Universal. The standing-room only crowd consumed the advice, as well as the vegetables, cheese and drinks.

Audience members also shared stories of great mentors and advice.

NBC News’ John Yang, who was joined by Vicki Burns of WNBC, Chris Blackman of NBC 10 and Johanna Guerra of Telemundo, said young journalists need to take the initiative.

“You have to be the one to lead when asking for advice,” Guerra said.

He recounted the story of one persistent intern. Every day, the intern would knock on her office door and confess, “I have nothing to do. I’m bored.”

Guerra found the intern assignments to do, and she soon developed the skills to be hired as an associate producer. That inquisitiveness garnered her respect, said Guerra, who offered to mentor the former intern.

People have to want the help, speakers said. Being mentored means making improvements and taking every piece of advice with gusto and willingness, they said.

Finding the fine line between being relentless and becoming a “pleasant pain in the rear,” means taking precautions, Yang said.

“There’s a difference between persistent and stalking,” he said to laughter. “… Persistence does show interests in learning and moving on to the next level.”

Mentorship is like a trial and error support group — they are there to help you through tough projects and offer advice, panelists said. Navigating ethical issues and newsroom politics requires the wisdom of seasoned veterans.

“They all want to see you grow and contribute to a better product,” Blackman said.

He said one intern sent him resume tapes every week. After every critique, she would nail the problem in her next tape, Blackman said.

Although having a mentor doesn’t guarantee journalistic success it does make the process easier, Yang said.

Temperatures may have exceeded comfortable levels, but audience members said the tips were well worth the sweat.

“It was hot and hot,” Medina said. “It was hot because it was hot inside. And it was also hot because students not only figured out how to become mentees but were [also] able to connect instantaneously with industry leaders.”

topic: UNITY Convention
tags: mentor, NBC, personal development

This entry was posted on Thursday, July 24th, 2008 at 10:25 pm and is filed under Latest Coverage, Online Multimedia, UNITY Convention. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.