My Summer at Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB)

As a general assignment reporter on the breaking news team, I covered a little bit of everything — wildfires, fireworks, traffic, weather, and even some crime. By the end it had become jokingly dubbed “the danger beat.”

I also ventured out with fellow intern Morgan Barnaby to visit the site of a “traffic diverter occupation” where people were protesting the removal of traffic diverters in parts of the city. I followed this story to a contentious public meeting and came to learn that there was more to the story than traffic diverters but really underlying concerns over questionable government transparency or lack thereof.

For my final feature story, I was able to combine my interest and career aspirations in Middle East politics when I visited the Afghan Support Network in Beaverton — where I reported on the deep impacts they have faced from funding cuts and immigration crackdowns under the Trump administration.

Turns out tracking the source of funding cuts was far more difficult than I anticipated, and this story stretched and forced me to adapt in ways that were an amazing educational opportunity. Although I wasn’t able to get a final audio story out of it, I am proud of my work in navigating the many language, cultural and political barriers to produce a meaningful digital story on a much underrepresented community.

I was able to produce nearly 30 stories this summer for OPB and will forever be grateful for this experience and my summer in Portland.