Stacey and I were in a huge dilemma last night. My amazing aunt got us 2 tickets to the Inauguration ceremony. They were in the 2nd best section, behind the seated congressional members and contributors. We had planned all week to go down to the National Mall early in the morning to talk to people who had been waiting since the early morning hours. We knew it would be cold, crowded and miserable, but we were willing. It was hard to make a decision when my aunt called the night before about the tickets. We immediately called Serena and asked what we should do. Of course, we wanted to cover the Inauguration as journalists, to be there with the crowd when Barack Obama was introduced as the President. But we also wanted to have the opportunity to listen and take in the whole atmosphere without worrying about our camera being knocked over. Serena didn’t hesitate at all. She told us that we should go and that, ultimately, it would make us better journalists if we did. And so we went.
It was an amazing experience. I thought the city was crowded earlier this week, but it was nothing like today. There were MILLIONS of people everywhere. Everyone was so excited and unfazed by the below freezing temperature. A metro ride to the city which normally takes 25 minutes took us more than an hour this morning. We waited in long lines and made it into our section at 11:40, only about fifteen minutes before the swearing-in ceremony. We stood there with thousands of other people in our section as Obama addressed the nation for the first time as our president. I get chills just thinking about it.
Before, during and after President Obama’s speech, people around me were so emotional, laughing, crying, chanting “Yes we did.” I realized something. President Obama appeals to so many people because he portrays himself as a public servant. People have faith and hope that he truly cares about them and their lives. A parallel to journalists, no? I really believe that journalists are public servants as well. And as long as we continue to tell the stories of the people in our community, they will continue to have faith and hope in us.
Yesterday, we interviewed a 20-year old girl from Ohio about why she had come to D.C. for the Inauguration. She said that she came to witness history and to meet all kinds of people. She said that EVERYONE HAS A UNIQUE STORY TO TELL. And right then, I understood. I think Stacey did too. That’s what we were there for and that’s why we work as hard as we do to make it in journalism-to tell the unique stories that people have.
It feels like we have been here forever, but at the same time, I can’t believe we are already flying out tomorrow. We were stressed out a lot on this trip, with no itinerary or concrete plans. We missed having an assignment desk! We didn’t get as much material as we wanted to get. But all in all, it was an amazing trip. I don’t think I fully realize the extent of how momentous the past few days were. We interviewed a woman who traveled to D.C. from Arizona. She had been to D.C. when she was a college student years ago to listen to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s “I Have a Dream” speech. She told us that she didn’t think the experience would be that big or inspiring. It wasn’t until years later that she finally understood. I think that moment will come for me too.
This is my last blog entry here in D.C. ‘Twas fun! Thank you to everyone who encouraged us while we were out here. I’m glad to know that our hard work didn’t go unnoticed. A special thanks to hard working EP’s Anne Hsu and Ned Dannenberg who spent late nights at ATVN to re-edit and post our stories. I owe you! Thank you EVERYONE!!!
Looking forward to returning to 80-degree Southern California weather…
