This is my second to last day at Spectrum. I am leaving with a six-month nest egg, two job leads and one burning desire to stitch journalism up – from the inside.

A few of my trusted confidants, including my Dad and Helen Thomas, advised me throughout 2009 to stick with my day job and ride the recession out. Well, I took that advice, and as a result spent twelve months packing away knowledge and pennies, creating digital case studies for my portfolio and simultaneously starting the process of graduating my brand from “EricaAmerica Citizen Journalist” to “Erica Anderson, Network Producer/Reporter.”

I have a driving instinct that now it’s time to put 100 percent into this ambition to help rebuild what I believe to be the most important industries to the health of our imperfect nation – journalism.

So stay tuned for what’s next; who I target and who I meet with, how I used social media to land opportunities and what the outcome will be.

One thing is for sure, now, more than ever, it is time to step into the fray and make the future happen.

Originally purposed for MTV.

This week’s piece is about seven young students. Not all Americans, but all in America.

Stan’s parents are French. Benedict has lived in the States since ’98. Eliza is half Swedish, half American and is Co-Editor of the school’s newspaper, the International Dateline.

Then there is Leena, who is a junior who has relatives in Lebanon – and Alex, the American, who calls himself the “least interesting kid in the school — culturally.” Yet somehow his presence is so rare it’s original.

Together, these kids make up the student body of the Washington International School (WIS). In a city with 170 Embassies and 10,000 core diplomats, the District transforms from a poor urban area to a Capitol city with international culture.

A few Saturday’s a year, the newspaper class meets to lay out the upcoming edition. They all write about different things – from the Hip Hop Appreciation Club to Google’s new browser – and offer their insight on DC gentrification and world conflicts. Some want to be journalists – others are there for fun. Something about it is so classic high school.

As for the America they live in, Benedict, the soft-spoken Brit, said, “I think (WIS) is the melting pot they claim America is.”

A Global Clique  

After the Show Info:       

for·eign pol·i·cy:
A set of goals outlining how the country will interact with other countries economically, politically, socially and military (Wikipedia).
 
The diplomatic policy of a nation in its interactions with other nations (Free Dictionary).

Senator John McCain (R-AZ)

Senator McCain’s web site does not have a specific place for the complete policy of the U.S.’s interaction with other sovereign nations. For that reason, I pulled some of the positions that speak to the American presence economically, politically, socially and military abroad.

JohnMcCain.com
· Strategy Victory for Iraq http://www.johnmccain.com/Informing/Issues/fdeb03a7-30b0-4ece-8e34-4c7ea83f11d8.htm

· Climate Change http://www.johnmccain.com/Informing/Issues/da151a1c-733a-4dc1-9cd3-f9ca5caba1de.htm

·Border Security and Immigration http://www.johnmccain.com/Informing/Issues/68db8157-d301-4e22-baf7-a70dd8416efa.htm

·Technology http://www.johnmccain.com/Informing/Issues/cbcd3a48-4b0e-4864-8be1-d04561c132ea.htm

·National Security http://www.johnmccain.com/Informing/Issues/054184f4-6b51-40dd-8964-54fcf66a1e68.htm

Senator Barack Obama (D-IL)
BarackObama.com

·Foreign Policy: http://origin.barackobama.com/issues/foreign_policy/

I am in some ways, more grown up after spending five days immersed as Press at the Republican National Convention. I watched celebrities, politicians, protesters, and people — like my right-wing roommates, Melissa and Gabby, come hundreds of miles away to take part in politics. I was impressed by the power of a political party — but not deterred from what I was there to do: test out cutting edge technology and cover this controversial Convention in the most unconventional way.

Here are a few of my favorite clips from the week. In no particular order, I give you, dispatches from the ground.

Arrested at the RNC

“Obama is Communist..” and Un-American

“In the Tent With Shepard Smith”

Bob Dole Campaigning for the Republicans

On the Floor – Live Broadcasting!

 “No Compromise” on Life – My Roommate for the Week

Ron Paul Supporters Protest

It was September 2008 | Bob Dole was in the Excel Center, on his way to visit the North Carolina delegation on behalf of his wife, Senator Elizabeth Dole. I caught him right before he walked into the floor pit.  I was alone, a credentialed journalist, with three cameras, an ID, and a pen in my pocket. I was on a mission to find some kind of story, and when I bumped into the Kansas Senator and Presidential candidate, I did. | More after the jump

Here are the basic nuts and bolts of the Live Streaming video process: After I hit “Broadcast”, the clip live went auNokia N95 to Flixwagon, a video sharing network that made it instantly available to anyone.

Instant connectvity. 60 seconds after I ended the clip, my phone buzzed twice. First a huge congrats from my Executive Producer who had watched it live, and my Dad, who called and admitted to having tears in his eyes. “You just interviewed my hero,” he said.

More Videos from the Republican National Convention 2008.

More than three thousand people came to the Green Apple Fest on the National Mall in Washington, DC on April 20th to celebrate Earth Day ’08. Before the rain hit, causing the show to close early, I chased down the likes of Chevy Chase, O.A.R. and a ton of awesome concert goers. Check out the full size video here, on my THINK.MTV.COM profile.

Check out my new iMovie video, which I just posted on You Tube.

In the first four days, it attracted more than 400 views.I used my Nikon CoolPix to shoot the photos on a trip to New Delhi, Varanasi, and Dharamsala, India this past March. Here is a little background.

Back to India

My first time to witness India was in 1996. I was twelve and had a mouth full of braces and blonde hair. From powdered milk to toilet paper, my cousin and I packed everything we could think of. “This was a third world country,” my Mom, would warn, packing me up so tight it hurt to let go.Yet the second I arrived and had my first dose of the chaos of India’s interstate, I would never feel homesick again. Instead, I would take  two more trips, at ages 19 and 22. Each time I would learn prfound truths about the world, humanity and interdependence. It was remarkable.

This March, in a local market, I asked our driver, Rammi, if people minded me taking their picture. He smiled, nodded his head “no” and gave me the warmest reminder of why I love Indians so much. From that moment on, I shot everything I could, always trying to connect with my subjects if just for an instant.