Photo: Jazmine Moering
Jaiden Smith
Managing Editor
Journalism majors from all local Mississippi universities and institutions gathered to take advantage of the annual Mississippi Association of Broadcasters conference, otherwise known as MAB day.
The conference was held on Nov. 14 at the Jackson State University Department of Journalism & Media Studies at the Mississippi E-Center.
The conference presents an opportunity for students to network with local professionals in the media field while engaging with their peers.
Beginning at 10 a.m., the student’s day consisted of three hourly break-out sessions, lunch, and a close out session that concluded the conference at 3p.m.
Professionals such as Marcus “Doc” Holiday, Emily Forester, Stephen Crews, Donna Lowry, Evelyn Mims, Marcus Hunter, Rex Jones, Mandi Stanley, Tai Takahashi, Melissa Boswell Townsend, and others gathered to advise, guide, and motivate students.
Each breakout session provided students with the opportunity to gather helpful information from current professionals on how to be successful in their individual fields and to ask any questions they could have pertaining their next steps after graduation.
Jordan Riley, a junior from Hattiesburg, Miss. was one of many Jackson State students who attended the conference.
Riley can personally testify to the importance of attending the conference and has personally experienced the benefits of MAB day.
“Last MAB Day, I gained an internship simply by networking. I was a future focus intern at WDAM in Hattiesburg,” Riley said. “I’m taking advantage of MAB day by networking with the other students as well as the professionals. No matter what your major is, you shouldn’t put yourself in a box when it comes to networking because you never know who someone might know and how they can help you.”
The conference is not exclusive to Jackson State students and students from other universities and colleges are encouraged to attend.
“I look forward to networking with other students the most,” Riley said. “Talking with people from other schools who may be in the same boat as you helps because they can give you advice or vice versa. It is also interesting to see how their journalism program is.”
Mississippi State University senior Kinnadi Walker, a mass communication major from Madison Miss. was also in attendance.
“This was my first time attending MAB,” Walker stated. “I always heard what it was like from some of my other classmates. I expected there to be more news stations than what I saw, however, I still was able to connect with others.”
Walker is interested in working in production and is pursuing a career as a producer, her exposure to Capstone, a course offered at Mississippi State, opened her eyes to fields other than just on-air talent.
Walker attended MAB to connect local Mississippi producers.
“I was able to send my content to a few news directors at MAB and I plan to continue to reach out for opportunities,” Walker stated.
Walker said the advice she would give to other first time MAB attendees is to not come empty handed.
“Always be sure to have your reel with you because you never know when it could be your moment to shine and be offered a job,” she said.
Mia Hughes, a JSU senior from St. Louis, Mo., also attended the conference.
“My concentration within the department is integrated marketing communications. I am interested in going into social media management and digital strategizing. I have a strong passion for content creation and I want to use my outlet to mentor young girls who struggle with navigating through life experiences,” Hughes stated. “This is not my first year attending the MAB conference, I went the last two years. I believe the previous years the breakout sessions were longer and more interactive. However, I did enjoy last year most of all because Brittany Bright was one of the guests and she’s an influential figure.”
As a returning attendee, Hughes knows the importance of pitching yourself at these kinds of events.
“For future attendees, I recommend they take note during breakout sessions and introduce themselves to the guest speakers. Have a 30 second pitch prepared because some people are looking to hire students within the department for full time positions or internships,” said Hughes.
