House Press Gallery -- Amanda Shi

In the midst of the hustle and bustle of DC, lies the political heart of the country. After our trip to the House Press Gallery, the fast-paced world of political journalism was presented to me. When we first walked into the press gallery, I was surprised at how much smaller it was than I imagined. Sitting in on a hearing was really exciting for me, just because it made me feel included in a moment in our government’s history; even if it was only the passing of a bill for a mule museum. Another element that surprised me was how fast, and sometimes incoherent, the members’ talked during their reports. This trait is why I don’t think I’ll be a reporter for political events, just because I couldn’t understand half of what the members were saying. If there were some sort of teleprompter, then I would be interested in writing pieces on these events, because politicians are unpredictable and interesting to me.
I learned many things on this trip. Journalists have a challenging job, especially political journalists. There is always so much happening in the world of politics and to keep track of it and report it to the masses is both exciting and intense. Journalists also have to have a good ear for important slices of information and be able to pick them out during a hearing such as the one we attended. That to me seems very challenging, because I have a short attention span if the subject presented does not particularly peak my interest. On this trip, I also learned a lot about my state’s senator, Jim Webb. Being newly elected to office, it was interesting to see what senator brings to the table. I learned that he was fighting for the rights of minorities, which is very important especially in Virginia. I haven’t always been interested in politics, but this trip had intrigued me and I think I will be more in tune with the political world from now on. Maybe someday I’ll even write a few political news pieces.