News Story

Students joined assistant professor Galen Clavio for a trip to Nashville recently to attend the College Media Institute’s Sports Reporting Training Camp.

Students Zain Pyarali, Spencer Davis, Laura Lys Shallow, Eddie Cotton, Andrew Vailliencourt, Josh Eastern, Hailey Hernandez  and Rylie Kyhn attended the two-day camp, which featured professional sports reporters from ESPN, Associated Press, The Ringer, Athlon Sports Magazines, National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association, SB Nation, MLB.com, the Tennessee Titans and the Nashville Predators as speakers and workshop leaders.

Eastern said three speakers’ words resonated for him: Derek Goold from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Buster Olney from ESPN and Clay Travis from Fox Sports.

“All three of these sports media pros shared their experiences in a unique way, but also got you to think a little bit,” he said. “The thinking part is what made this as valuable as it was. They all came from vastly different backgrounds and all had their different perspectives on the industry.”

Holly Hernandez also appreciated Travis’ talk about not fearing failure.

“Travis said People are so afraid of failure that they won’t commit to something that can bring them success,” she said. “People fail because they’re afraid to try. It sounds simple, but is good advice for everyone in sports media whether they are beginning their careers or already established as professionals. Don’t get complacent and don’t settle doing what you’re comfortable with, because there will be someone who is willing to take a risk who will outwork you.”

Students also networked and compared notes with fellow attendees, hundreds of college students from around the nation also aspiring to sports media careers.

“Another thing I took away from this was how ahead of the curve I feel by attending Indiana University,” Eastern said. “The opportunities I have gotten are second to none, and many of the other students there just don’t quite have the resources that we at IU are very fortunate to have.”