[503] MTSU Broadcast Journalism Major Wins Summer Internship at CNN

June 13, 2011
Contact Tom Tozer, 615-898-2919

MTSU BROADCAST JOURNALISM MAJOR WINS SUMMER INTERNSHIP AT CNN

MURFREESBORO—From a pool of 190 applicants, Haley Ellis, a senior at Middle Tennessee State University and a broadcast journalism major, was one of three students in the nation selected for a summer internship at CNN Productions in Atlanta.
“She beat out candidates at some of the top schools in the country,” said CNN Executive Producer Jeffery Reid, himself an MTSU graduate (B.S. ’81) and product of the university’s nationally known College of Mass Communication.
“I am very excited about my internship with Mr. Jeffery Reid at CNN,” Ellis said. “I was attending the College of Mass Communication scholarship ceremony where Mr. Reid was being inducted into the MTSU Mass Comm Wall of Fame. After the banquet, I introduced myself to Mr. Reid just to be friendly, and he told me he read through my resume and he thought it looked impressive. The end of school came and I did have an internship lined up with a Nashville station, which I was very pleased about. I went home before my internship started, and I received a call from CNN. They interviewed me on the phone. The next day, Mr. Reid called and told me I was accepted as an intern in the Special Investigations and Documentary Unit.
“I’m so excited for this opportunity. I know it will be an amazing experience that I will grow and learn from,” Ellis continued. “My parents are so proud and beyond thrilled for me. When I was interviewing for the position, my mom didn’t know who I was talking to, and I wrote on my notebook ‘CNN.’ She saw that and her jaw dropped.”
Ellis said she was honored to be selected. She learned that CNN had interviewed six people out of the original pool of 190 candidates—and they selected the top three.
“I want to learn anything and everything I can.”
Ellis earned an associate’s degree in communication at Danville Area Community College, Danville, Ill., where she was a Presidential Scholar. She is currently on the dean’s list and a member of Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society at MTSU. She plans to graduate this fall.
Ellis’ parents, Jill and Walter Ellis, live in Buchanan, Va.
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Founded in 1911, Middle Tennessee State University is a Tennessee Board of Regents institution located in Murfreesboro and is the state’s largest public undergraduate institution. In September 2011, MTSU will celebrate its 100th year anniversary with special events and activities throughout the year—kicked off by a Blue-Tie Centennial Gala on Friday, Sept. 9.