Pentagon Reaction Piece

Upon arrival at the pentagon, I was immediately surrounded by groups of seemingly very important people and military personnel. These officials combined with the strict security we underwent made me realize how important and secretive the Department of Defense really is. When we sat in on the press briefing, I felt I was experiencing first-hand the transparency of government. I was able to sit in on a report from Iraq even before it had been digested and reported on by the media. Although the briefing was only summarizing the progress of one area, the commander's optimistic outlook on his troops' successes overturned some of my previous skepticism regarding United States efficacy in Iraq. The journalists we spoke to after the briefing were very experienced and offered some of the more valuable information I have received in terms of actually becoming a journalist. I now know that I need to work specifically on my journalistic writing skills, not just my writing skills in general. These professionals also provided insight into different fields of journalism such as producing, to which I had not been previously exposed. In our tour, I was surprised by how jovial the men in the shiny military uniforms were. I enjoyed visiting the 9-11 memorial, and learning about the $20,000, bomb-proof, green windows. I feel very lucky to have gotten to take a glimpse into life at the Pentagon.