Sept. 28, 2016
By: Ashlee Jones, Nevada women's basketball guard
Playing basketball has taken me all over the United States. This time however it wasn't basketball that took me across the country to the nation's capital.
During the first week of August I had the opportunity to travel to Washington D.C. for my first ever National Association of Black Journalist (NABJ) conference. NABJ is an organization of African-American journalists, students, and media professionals. It was founded in 1975 in Washington D.C. by 44 journalists. NABJ's purpose is to provide quality programs and services to advocate on behalf of black journalists. The conference is held once a year and journalists from all over the United States come together for a week to attend career fairs, network, get their work out there for professionals to see and of course, have a little fun.
This was an experience that I will never forget. Since I was kid, my whole life has revolved around basketball. This was the first time though I was able to take a step away from basketball and into the professional world and see what life could be like when my playing career is over. I wore dresses for five days straight, which is unusual for a basketball player, had the opportunity to share my work with sports broadcasting professionals, and see some of what it will take to make it in this business.
My week in Washington was filled with late nights and early mornings. We were constantly on the go. There were events in the mornings, the career fair and panels during the day, and more events at night. I had the opportunity to attend a breakfast hosted by ESPN, an event put on by Bleacher Report, and a breakfast hosted by NASCAR just to name a few. During those events I was introduced to so many great people who work in the industry such as Hall of Famer David Aldridge, Jay Harris, Earl "The Pearl" Monroe, Jemele Hill, Angel Gray, and Cari Champion. They were some of the nicest people I have met and were so willing to give me advice and help me in any way possible.
My trip to Washington was one for the books. It was an amazing learning experience that I will keep with me forever. When I land that first job I know I will look back at this experience; my first NABJ conference and reflect back on how much it helped me get to where I will be. I gained new friendships ranging from Hawai'i to Wisconsin and back to California and made great professional connections with places like ESPN, ESPNW, Turner Sports, and NESN to name a few.
Gianna Giorgi, my friend, my mentor, and alumni of the University of Nevada took me under her wing and showed me the ropes during the conference. Everywhere she went I went and when she met someone she also introduced them to me. She was constantly looking out for me and pushing me to get outside of my comfort zone. When I got to Washington I was nervous and shy. I had never been around broadcasting professionals before and I was so hesitant to show them my work. Once I finally took that step and got out of my comfort zone it was only up from there. I started talking to people about my work, showed some of my film to different networks, and I got really good feedback all the way around. By the time I left Washington I was reenergized, confident, and ready to get to work for next year's conference!
I have to end this with a big and special thank you to my journalism professor, Paul Mitchell, and my mentor, Gianna Giorgi, for making this trip amazing!
