Networking at AAJA Scholarship Luncheon

IMG_1481This year?s AAJA Scholarship Luncheon was held at the Maharani Restaurant in downtown San Francisco. It was an important day for me ? I was about to receive the first installment of the scholarship I won earlier this summer. I thought I was going to be late for it so I took a brisk but sweat-inducing walk from Market St. to Post (I didn?t have a car so I had to travel on foot from the Civic Center BART). Imagine walking in a suit and tie uphill when the sun is descending straight on your forehead. Heat + Anxiety = something definitely not good.

By the time I arrived at my destination, however, the crowd was just beginning to make its way in so I began to calm down. ?Mingle? was a word that stuck in my mind throughout the entire afternoon. It was a good opportunity to network with some of the influential Asian American journalists in the Bay Area. I heard stories of how they got into the business and got a lot of advice to stay involved with journalism during my college years. I?ll definitely look at the possibility of writing for my campus newspaper and apply for summer internships with professional publications.

IMG_1485Apparently it was Phil Bronstein?s wedding anniversary today so he was in a bit of a rush to get out of the place. That didn?t stop me from feeling captivated by every word he spoke and question he answered. The keynote speaker stood for a good 10?15 minutes or so, talking about the slow death of print journalism and what?s in store for the San Francisco Chronicle in the years to come. He didn?t make any bold predictions about what he thought would happen to the print medium in the next decade or so. Instead he alluded to the supposed plan to implement videos on SFGate in the near future and becoming the go-to source for story leads in Bay Area news (I?d say that?s a pretty bold statement). It did not go unchallenged, as a television news producer spoke up and defended his profession.

It was quite a day for me and I was completely exhausted by the time I got home. I met a lot of interesting people that I hope to bump into during my professional life. Among them: some of the best writers from major Bay Area newspapers, charismatic radio-talk show hosts, and a fellow admirer of the late R.W. Apple of the New York Times.

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Sunday, September 16th, 2007 On My Mind, School

4 Comments to Networking at AAJA Scholarship Luncheon

  1. I heard you were biting my style. Not a good look my friend. anyways nice you won $1500!

  2. Charlie Brown on September 16th, 2007
  3. wow! ur my role model man!

  4. Lynn on September 16th, 2007
  5. That’s tiight! I saw you on your way there! I remember going to a panel discussion here at Berkeley, and everyone there was in AAJA, and I thought “Wow, they’re accomplished,” and now here you are with an AAJA scholarship! Congrats!

  6. Patrici on September 17th, 2007
  7. congratulations!

  8. cat with the fiddle on September 30th, 2007

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