Domestic Affairs Forum Media Trip

The club started the day sitting in on the New York Times' Page One meeting to hear how the editors pick which stories to pursue and how social media drives their decisions. Cadets were then able to talk to several reporters and editors, including Jim Dao (Op-ed Editor) and Rukmini Callimachi (Chief Terrorism Correspondent). The club then visited MSNBC to see the differences between print and television media. COL (R) Jack Jacobs gave the cadets a tour of the studios to show what goes into the production of a news show, including a visit to the control room where the news that Senator John McCain would not support the latest healthcare bill was just breaking. The cadets then sat in on Dr. Rachel Maddow's editorial meeting to see how she and her producers decide which stories to pursue for her show that evening. COL Jacobs also took the club to the set of Saturday Night Live, where they talked to crew members and learned some of the history behind the show.