For 19 Cronkite students, the three-week trip to cover the Games was an opportunity to do the same among national and international journalists.
“As a group, we were able to produce a ton of content for Cronkite News Service and surrounding Arizona media outlets,” junior Austin Controulis said in an email. “All the stories and people I interviewed are things I really never thought I would ever get to do in my life.”
The trip, led by Cronkite Assistant Dean Mark Lodato and faculty associate Greg Boeck, gave students the opportunity to cover a multitude of Olympic events.
“It was spectacular,” Lodato said.
Students created content for various platforms, including print, video and photo. The 14 undergraduates and five graduate students created over 100 individual projects, Lodato added.
The theme of the stories tended to be Arizona-based. Television and print affiliates statewide picked up many of the pieces, including the Arizona Republic, the CBS-affiliate in Tucson and the NBC-affiliate in Yuma.
“We knew there would be significant interest in Arizona content,” Lodato said.
Molly Kelleher, KOLD News 13 Executive Producer in Tucson, said she was impressed with the product coming from Cronkite students.
“The reporters in London were able to cultivate great sources for their stories, from coaches, players, tourists, even organizers,” Kelleher said in an email. “The stories were a great mix of features, news and profiles.”
Kelleher added that the Tucson station aired Cronkite packages “in some form” 21 times and she hopes to continue to receive contributions from the school and its students.
The program was an idea put into motion approximately 18 months ago, Lodato said. It budded from other coverage of national and international events, including Cronkite’s election coverage, Washington D.C. bureau and MLB Spring Training classes.
“I couldn’t believe I was actually going,” senior Cailyn Bradley said in an email. “This trip had been something I had been waiting for for so long and when it finally arrived, I didn’t know what to do with myself.”
Students gained hands-on experience in reporting and journalism skills. Senior Molly Smith described how important it was to learn and adapt quickly when plans changed.
“Many times we had stories fall through or events that didn’t go quite as planned, and you have to adjust on the fly and make the best out of what you’ve been given,” she said in an email.
One of the biggest lessons learned through the process was establishing a way to “parachute in” to set up and operate a news bureau, Lodato said.
Though some nights lasted until the early hours of the morning, students still had opportunities to participate in activities outside their reporting. Some of the group purchased tickets to attend the U.S.-Japan Women’s Soccer gold medal match, which seemed to be the highlight of the trip.
“There is nothing like seeing your country win gold,” Bradley said. “We were engulfed with the pride of USA. In that moment, I couldn’t have been any happier.”
By the end, Cronkite became a staple among the other professional journalists. Lodato even recalled his students walking into one of the final Men’s Basketball practices to chants of “A-S-U!” from players on the team.
The trip was one of three major study abroad programs Cronkite offered this summer, which also included one to China and another to Europe. The overall cost of the Olympics trip ran a little over $3,000 for class credit and lodging in London. Students were required to purchase their own plane tickets between the United States and the United Kingdom.
In the end, many of the students received the experience they’ve always dreamed of—covering sports icons and heroes.
“Holding a mic up to Kevin Durant’s face was probably the most intimidating and coolest thing I’ve ever done,” Bradley said.
Contact the reporter at stongue@asu.edu
