Kayleigh Garrison Interns as Reporter at HOMTV

Kayleigh Garrison Interns as Reporter at HOMTV Junior Journalism student Kayleigh Garrison stuck around town over the summer to work as a reporting intern for the government-owned television station HOMTV in Lansing. While Garrison had previously worked as a social media intern for the same company, she considered this to be the most hands-on internship experience available for journalism students.

For Garrison, there was never a dull moment at HOMTV. She was trusted with incredible amounts of responsibility and was presented countless opportunities that made her internship one to remember. Garrison, who has a concentration in broadcast journalism, put together news packages daily, wrote a weekly newsletter for more than 700 people and even anchored the news once a week. As only a junior in college, Garrison has had experiences that many do not even have until beginning their careers post-graduation.

One of Garrison’s favorite experiences from her internship was covering opening day for the Lansing Lugnuts in the spring. She was able to film from anywhere in the stadium, interview team members and coaches and spend the day with media privileges.

She also covered a court hearing in which former U.S. Olympics Gymnastics Doctor Larry Nassar requested that Judge Rosemarie Aquilina be removed from his case. Working on such a high-profile case was an experience that Garrison will never forget, especially since it is a case that she follows so closely on her own time. These opportunities and many more helped Garrison prepare for her future and career, and helped give her the tools she will need to succeed.

With deadlines to meet and the need for accuracy, it did not take long for Garrison to realize the importance of being independent and highly motivated in the journalism field. This internship allowed her to create content self-sufficiently and to learn how to dig deep into issues on her own. What surprised her the most was how hands-on the internship was, as she was trusted with equipment that was worth thousands of dollars while simply being an intern.

Garrison’s next adventure will be spent studying abroad in the United Kingdom at Lancaster University for the better part of this semester. She will mainly be taking general education credits, and she plans on going back to HOMTV in the spring after returning to East Lansing. Garrison recommends an internship at HOMTV for any journalism students at Michigan State, since the organization offers something for everyone with opportunities in social media, production, creative production, and reporting.