A week in the life of a J major.

Today kicked off a big week for us journalism majors at Red River.

We started with a visit to the Winnipeg Law Courts this morning. It was a really interesting experience.

I was a little bit nervous going in, as I wasn't sure if I would be able to find a good story, and even if I did, write about it without breaking one of the many rules about writing about court cases.

But, with the help of Mike McIntyre, lawyer Kevin Sneesby and the CP stylebook, I got a story (a bail hearing turned sentencing) and wrote it in less time than I expected. Most importantly, I was happy with it.

But the best part of the day was wandering in-and-out of courtrooms and taking in how the justice system works on a daily basis. With so many cases to process and lawyers and judges hurrying from courtroom to courtroom, I can't believe they keep it all straight.

I was surprised at how informal some of the proceedings were. The public can come and go from courtrooms as they please, as can lawyers, many lining up their documents in front of the judge before the last hearing is over.

But the best experience of the day was in a more formal courtroom where a preliminary murder trial was taking place.

It was more like the trials you see on TV — a judge, lawyers, the accused, witnesses. I wish I could have stayed longer.

I hope I get to do some crime reporting sometime in my career.



Tomorrow, Dawna Friesen will be in Winnipeg filming Global National at the Forks, and since she is a former CreComm J major, she's coming by the college to talk to the J students and first years about social media.

Dawna is really an inspiration for all of us because she started from the same, humble roots as many of us and got her education where we're studying. I can only hope to one day be as successful as Dawna Friesen and I'm looking forward to hearing her speak tomorrow.



Then Wednesday, of course, is civic election day! I'm looking forward to doing a few live hits from Judy Wasylycia-Leis's election night headquarters for KICK-FM, the college radio station.

But I also think we're all excited for the election to be over. It's been on our minds — and workloads — since the beginning of September, so to finally see the results and end our coverage will be gratifying and a relief.

And of course, Thursday, is broadcast journalism today. This week, we're learning how to put together full broadcast stories with interviews. Lots to learn!

And Friday, our day of rest? Many of us have few to no classes on Fridays, but there is really no rest for the J majors. Homework calls.