The student media members participated in small, community-focused sessions about mental health and diversity, equity and inclusion in the newsroom.
While on a conference trip this fall to Denver, Elon junior Ellis Chandler mingled with media industry professionals, seeking feedback on her work as a journalist while learning about diversity, equity and inclusion and mental health in the news industry. In just two days, Chandler said she walked away with skills not only to better herself as a journalist, but also as a leader – all of which she and her fellow Elon attendees planned to incorporate in their student media roles.
Chandler was one of three Elon students who attended the Radio, Television and Digital News Association conference – RTDNA21 – in September. Accompanying Chandler were seniors Maeve Ashbrook and Baylor Rodman, as well as Associate Professor Rich Landesberg, who advises Elon News Network. At this year’s RTDNA21 conference, both professional journalists and students focused on the power of the team, representation and resilience. The conference, hosted in Colorado’s capital, also focused on community, connection, service and leadership.
While Chandler has been active with Elon’s Journalism Department and student media since her arrival on campus, the pandemic has hindered travel and her trip to Denver was the first time she has attended a journalism conference. Chandler said she loved the experience, especially the small, intimate size of the gathering this year.
“I knew almost everyone there by the end of the first evening and definitely by the end of the first day,” Chandler said. “All of our sessions were discussion-based, so it was like talking with new friends I had met rather than being lectured to.”
For Ashbrook and Rodman, attending the conference as seniors allowed them to figure out what work environments they seek as they enter the job market. Since the conference, Ashbrook has announced that she will begin her career as a multimedia journalist at KAKE News in Wichita, Kansas.
“This was so helpful as a senior starting job applications,” said Ashbrook, who graduated in December 2021. “This (conference experience) told me a lot about not necessarily what I want to do, but where I want to be and what type of boss I want to work for.”
Bringing students to conferences is something Landesberg enjoys doing – especially when it includes skills he and students can take back to Elon.
“The training focused on DEI, mental health and wellbeing, and use of numbers. Perfect training for me and our students – those are all issues we are exploring in the Journalism Department and the communications school,” Landesberg said. “I picked up a number of ideas I will be sharing with colleagues and students. And our students have already met with the ENN staff to present the new ideas they picked up at the conference.”