Intern’s Corner with Taylor: Shadowing Phil & Mel
Welcome to my corner! I’m Taylor Helson, the Digital Content Intern at Beasley Media Group in Charlotte for the summer.
It’s 2018, we all do a lot of scrolling, liking, reposting, tagging and sending emojis literally anywhere they’ll fit. I, however, think I have you beat with this internship. As the ~intern,~ I usually write posts for each station’s websites, which I then shamelessly plug on the respective Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook accounts. Outside of the usual writing, publishing and scheduling posts, I have gotten many opportunities to meet, shadow and learn from awesome, charismatic radio personalities.
This morning, I sat in the K104.7 studio with Phil and Mel. With Mel’s quick wit and Phil’s infectious laugh, I would have no complaints spending my mornings in here. The two of them explained to me that all on-air talent is responsible for writing posts each day. Nice to know I’m not the only one struggling to come up with blog post topics and captions.
They kept the music rolling while they both scrolled through their Facebook feeds to find a post that would inspire their next post. Mel found herself going on and on about her two Jack Russels to me, so naturally, we all agreed that an article with cute Jack Russel videos was calling her name.
I got to see how Phil and Mel take calls for Hi-Low Cash Jackpot, hear Phil’s weather reports for this miserably hot day ahead of me, and even learn a bit about their podcast. The two of them are taking on bi-weekly podcasts that Mel describes as PG-13, that focus on relationships and literally just co-existing with bosses, family, friends, etc. The talents’ perspectives are so different, the insight that they all bring to the table makes for a lively, entertaining podcast.
I think, overall, the most important factor for these radio talents, and even positions like mine, is staying connected. Whether it is on Facebook, with callers, with friends, co-workers or the world around them, staying plugged into it all makes their job a lot easier and more fun.
So here is the millennial telling everyone just how crucial social media is to her everyday life. How predictable.
Taylor Helson – High Point University
Digital Content Intern – Charlotte, NC
