A verb or not a verb, that is the question

I chose to minor in professional editing in college, so I'm one of those people who find reading a chapter about semicolon usage to be joyable and the difference between who and whom to be more fun of a challenge than Sudoku is. So when we were given a mini grammar lesson at orientation, to remember that "intern" is a noun and not a verb, I quietly chided myself: "Oh my God, I've been using it as a verb all my life. Why has no one ever corrected me?"

Mental note: "I must, must, must remember this!!"How exciting it was, a new grammar rule.(Hopefully a group of journalists won't find that comment above to be as nerdy as my non-journalism friends would.)

But in an interaction with Merriam-Webster, this excitement quickly turned to confusion:

Main Entry: in·tern

Pronunciation: 'in-"t&rn, in'

Function: transitive verb: to confine or impound especially during a war - in·tern·ee /(")in-"t&r-'nE/ noun- in·tern·ment /in-'t&rn-m&nt, 'in-"/ noun

Main Entry: in·ternPronunciation: 'in-"t&rn

Function: intransitive verb: to work as an intern

Not only is intern a verb according to M-W, it could be both a transitive and an intransitive verb. Uh oh. I contacted my other favorite internet friend, consultant Google News,who tells me to "search and browse 4,500 news sources updated continuously." Perfect, will do. The word "interning" went into the search box and out spouted this:

Results 1 - 10 of about 142 for interning. (0.34 seconds)

I skim through to find if there are any big name papers, not that they're necessarily always grammatically correct, but you know. Dallas Morning News has an article with "I'll be interning at a local TV news station..."

The Tennessean --whose managing editor (my lovely dinner neighbor) might be just as big of an ice cream fan as me, or dare I say, an even bigger one -- used the sentence: "While a student at Belmont, Smith spent nine months in Chicago interning for Winfrey's...." in a recentarticle.

A search at nytimes.com brings up over 100 articles that use the word "interning," most of which are used as verbs. So maybe, just maybe it's OK to say that I'm very, very excited about *interning* at The Orange County Register next month?

Hmmm, Dick Thien, can you confirm? :)

-- Cathy Tran, Spring Scholar, The Orange County (Calif.) Register and the University of California-Santa Barbara
... who still has lots to learn about grammar!

Editor's note: Dick Thien says that the English language does change. If a word is used enough, it becomes acceptable. There are many sources on language. The dictionary is always the most authoritative source. (But do read John Bremner's Words on Words.) Webster's New World Dictionary (Third College Edition) lists "intern" first as a noun. Until it lists "intern" as a verb (not a transitive verb), it's not acceptable usage. Have fun working as an intern at the Register.

On the multimedia bandwagon

Today, I had an epiphany. It’s time to get my butt in gear and jump on the multimedia bandwagon. After hearing the fascinating presentations on the changing environment of the newsroom, I realized I must learn all that I can about multimedia. I need to learn about blogging, audio and video feeds and maybe even podcasts. Although I have a general knowledge of these, I do not know how they work.

It’s intriguing to see how fast the newspaper business is changing, but it also is intimidating. I don’t think I truly realized the extent of how connected the Web and the newspaper are until the presentations of David Ledford (executive editor, The News Journal, Wilmington, Del.) and the former Chipsters. As soon as I get home, I’m going to view the disk Ledford gave us and look into how to learn more.

On a different note, I was little surprised that I share the same opinion on the death penalty as Kenneth Starr. I don’t know why I'm surprised. I have little knowledge of him, other than his connection to the impeachment of President Clinton and the Monica Lewinsky scandal. I don’t believe we should abolish the death penalty, but I do believe it is in need of restructuring.

I also agreed with Starr when he said that one of the only real defenses in death penalty cases is self-defense. There are just some people who can not be rehabilitated, although the percentage is probably small. The problem is knowing who can be rehabilitated and who is incapable of change.

To end on a happier note, I loved talking with the former Chipsters and career coaches over lunch. (Career coach) Mary Ann Hogan, (alum) Sue Stock, Robbie Morganfield (of the Diversity Institute) and (alum) Kristen Go gave me so many helpful tips about generating story ideas for my county-government beat that I could have cried. I didn’t, of course, because that simply would be unprofessional.

-- Maria Miranda, reporter, Madera (Calif.) Tribune and California State University-Fresno

Free therapy

If I sum up this day in one word, the word would be "awakening." My appreciation for journalism awakened today for the first time in a month. I feel like everything that happened today renewed my spirit for journalism.

One of the most profound things I heard today came from Mary Ann Hogan, our career coach. In our last session, she had us sit in a circle and confess our fears. Everyone has the same fears. We all fear the pressure of deadlines, fast-paced newsrooms and expectations, etc. My fear, of course, is not living up to the expectations of my editors and to my own expectations.

Mary Ann said that everything she heard fits into three categories: Who, what and how. She told us that we can’t change who we are, what we do will constantly change and the only control we have is how we conduct ourselves. Just get over who you are, she said.

Let me just say that I got a free therapy session! Mary Ann is right. I’m young and very green. I accept that now. I don’t know everything, but I will learn.

Robbie Morganfield of the Diversity Institute also was at the session. He said we need to take our jobs seriously but also enjoy them. I need to start doing that again. The only expectations that are super high are my own. So, I’m getting the monkey off my back! He also said every day is a new day to learn, and I'm also going to do that.

This morning John Seigenthaler, the founder of the First Amendment Center, spoke to us about the First Amendment and how it’s taken for granted. John is an interesting guy. He has so much passion for history and journalism. He put us in teams, and we had to answer questions about the First Amendment. I was team captain. Brian Aguilar and Craig Henry were on my team. We tied for second. But I just want to say that I have a minor in Balkan and Eastern European history until 1918. My American history facts are rough, and I’m going to refresh them when I get home.

Earlier today, Mark Silverman (of The Tennessean, Nashville), (Career Coach) Colleen Fitzpatrick and Meg Downey (of The Tennessean) spoke to us about charting our career path. Mark said that “we need to understand what we don’t know and what we need to learn”--personally and professionally. Amen. How therapeutic.

-- Alexandria Burris, reporter, Daily Advertiser, Lafayette, La., and Louisiana State University

Moving too fast

The lecture by David Ledford titled “Evolving in a digital world” impressed me. But at the same time, it scared me. A story can benefit greatly from audio and visual elements. However, I’m afraid of what this might mean for the future of journalism and for my future as a starting journalist.

I enjoy photography, film and radio, but I’ve not had work experience with them. As I think about the future and the demands that I will face during my internship, I worry a lot. It is frightening to think that I will have to produce several stories a day under deadline. I also might have to produce blogs, updates for the newspaper’s Web site and multimedia pieces to go with a print story. I’m not sure if I’ll ever be able to juggle all those things in a day without loosing my mind. The idea that journalism is changing even more also scares me. Journalists now have to juggle several things at a time. Because of that, they might be forced to produce shorter stories.

In today’s forum titled “The Press, the Public and the Death Penalty,” one of the panelists made a valid point about the complexity of the death penalty and the way journalists cover the issue. Kenneth Starr, dean and professor of law at Pepperdine University, said that one of the cases he worked on in California did not receive media coverage. One of the reasons, he said, was because the law and cases that deal with capital punishment are complex. In order to report on the law, a reporter must understand the law. Other panelists agreed with Starr. They said some reporters who interviewed them had only a day to report the story. They also said that reporters did not follow up, and it's important to do so to understand a case.

One of the reasons why I am so passionate about journalism is because I am a curious person. I like to know how and why things work the way they do. The transition from the fast world of journalism into an even faster world of journalism scares me. Not just because of the daily deadlines but because of the resulting quality of the product.

-- Maria Ines Zamudio, Summer 2007 Scholar, Springfield (Mo.) News-Leader and University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

A surprising entertainer

His eyes move slowly around the room, scanning and acknowledging everyone who meets his gaze. It is difficult not to smile when his eyes meet yours. He seems perfectly innocent in the back of the room, leaning against that beautiful cane, listening intently as John Seigenthaler begins to speak. Suddenly. John Quinn cracks a joke about Mr. Seigenthaler’s age as a ripple of laughter sounds through the room. Not so innocent after all.

During the morning break, Mr. Quinn approaches me and Mariecar Mendoza while we are mid-conversation and tells us he has a juicy story about Mr. Seigenthaler. Our ears are burning and the reporters in us instantly take over. The story is good. Tabloid good. We are cackling with laughter at the story’s end, and Mr. Quinn nods with satisfaction, ambling away to entertain more unsuspecting victims. Unfortunately, we must respect Mr. Quinn’s confidentiality request and cannot share the information.

Something tells me that when John Quinn says that Chips Quinn becomes your family, he ain’t lying. I've never before met such a respected and seasoned person in the journalism industry and felt liked I've known him forever. But like any family member, I know I better keep any of my indiscretions well-hidden from Mr. Quinn.

-- Kellie Hwang, Spring Scholar, The Arizona Republic, Phoenix, and University of Washington

Journalism on the Internet

I heard about the future of journalism today. David Ledford, vice president/news and executive editor of the The News Journal in Delaware, gave a presentation this afternoon on how his newsroom is transforming itself to meet the demands of a tech-savvy world. The changes he outlined were many. They included: restructuring the newsroom to better accommodate the online edition of The News Journal; changing the philosophy of the workspace from newsroom to "information center", a place where news and resources are compiled in a 24-7 environment and are easily accessible online; training his staff to know how to publish on the Web; distributing news in several platforms via mobile devices, the Internet and print.

I came away impressed with what he spoke about and felt excited about what lies ahead for journalism on the Internet.

-- Brian Aguilar, Summer 2007 Scholar, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif., and University of California-Berkeley

Learning from accomplished journalists

Today has been a very busy day, packed with a lot of useful information from many intelligent people. At times, I feel a little intimidated by all the accomplished journalists I meet, but I remind myself that they are here to help us young aspiring reporters.

I was delighted to hear from Meg Downey (managing editor, The Tennessean, Nashville). She spoke about managing her personal life along with her career. She mentioned that she decided to take a part-time job after having children. This is something I am struggling with. I want to gain all the experience I can, but I am torn between wanting to work full time and wanting to be home with my beautiful son. She told me that I could contact her if I had questions, which I will plan to do. She gave me hope that this issue I’m having can be resolved.

I also enjoyed hearing about the kind of person John “Chips” Quinn Jr. was. From the stories we’ve heard, it appears that he was a man full of life, a man who was not afraid to be himself. Sometimes, I see John Quinn Sr. in the hallway. I would love to approach him to ask him questions because I know he has some great stories to tell, but my shyness stops me.

I wish that I had the ability to not care so much about what people think of me. I think that is why I am so scared to start my internship. I hope that after this weekend is over, I will have more confidence in myself and in my writing career.

Listening to John Seigenthaler talk about our history was eye-opening. How much he knows is amazing.

I feel honored to be in the presence of such accomplished journalists. I only hope that one day I can have as much talent as they have.

-- Stephanie Armenta, Spring Scholar, The Arizona Republic, Phoenix, and Arizona State University