MALLORY BRUNING

ANTELOPE STAFF

I woke up, crawled out of my hotel bed and glimpsed through my window to admire the streets of Washington, D.C. I probably spent ten minutes staring out the window, like a little kid who had never seen a city skyline before. 

Then I got dressed. I buttoned up the crisp white shirt that cost an arm and leg from JCPenney’s. I zipped up the 80s-style dress pants I discovered in Goodwill. Once I tied up my hair and slug my lanyard over my neck, I felt like Lois Lane. I smiled in the mirror as I tugged on my heels, even though I was still a bite-sized reporter that stood at 5’3. For most of my life, I felt like a poser. But today felt different. 

I was invited to go to MediaFest 2022, a journalism conference, with our newspaper team in Washington, D.C. Although boredom always came to mind when I heard “conference”, I accepted the offer. I was also excited to see what this conference would entail.

I didn’t expect it to be one of my favorite trips I’ve ever taken.

There were so many parts of Washington that I loved, but there were two main reasons why I enjoyed the trip so much.

Honestly, I was not expecting to like MediaFest at all. This was the conference that we came to Washington for in the first place. 

I quickly discovered that MediaFest was an amusement park for journalists. I was bouncing with excitement the entire time. It was incredible to be where people were tied by the same passion.

Even more surprising was that I enjoyed the panels at the conference. I found myself encapsulated while furiously scribbling down notes. The panels covered journalistic topics that I was hungry to get answers about; the danger reporters face in Mexico, sharing the voices of vulnerable sources, how to dig through public records. All the panels were led by professional journalists. Some even hailed from the illustrious The New York Times and The Washington Post. I was geeking out so hard. After the conference, I left with a full notebook and a magnetic pull to use what I learned. 

The other factor that made the trip unforgettable was because of the company I had. 

I had never really spent time with The Antelope students outside of business hours. While I was there, I started bonding with them.

I remember when I was walking to the White House with The Antelope kids, strolling through Washington with its fall foliage and pastel skies. I remember feeling immense happiness to be with people with a common purpose as young journalists and as friends.