Thanks to Bridget Niermeier for writing this post about her amazing summer internship with Discovery Communications. Bridget is constantly driven in all that she does and even plans to spend next semester working in New York City! We're all so proud of you, and can't wait to see all that you accomplish in the future!
"Hey yall! Here’s my attempt at squeezing my incredible summer at Discovery Communications into a short(ish) blog post to tell you all about it. What most people don’t know about Discovery is that it isn’t just the Discovery Channel. The company owns 13 networks, including Discovery, TLC, Animal Planet, OWN, Hub and more. It’s the #1 Non-Fiction Media Company in the world, and it reaches over 220 countries. I myself was an intern for TLC in the company headquarters located in Silver Spring, MD, just outside of Washington D.C. Let me just say…living in northern Virginia, I can’t think of any other place that would have made two hours of traffic every morning, and again every evening, more worth it.
As a PR major only coming out of my sophomore year, I honestly didn’t apply to Discovery having much hope; but after rounds of interviews I got a call offering me a summer internship. I couldn’t say no. The opportunity was humbling enough, but when I arrived at orientation on June 3rd, my fellow interns and I were told that 163 interns were hired by Discovery across the country out of 13,968 undergraduate and graduate students that applied. I think I sat in shock for about 12 minutes.
After bonding inevitably with the other 70 interns that would spend their summer in the Silver Spring office, learning all about the company, and of course completing the always exciting paperwork that comes with starting at a new company, I was greeted by some members of my team and together we went up to the 6th floor which is shared by TLC and the Discovery Channel. A wedding dress from “Say Yes to the Dress” hanging to my left, a trashcan filled with rejected clothing by Stacy and Clinton from “What Not To Wear” and Honey Boo Boo, sassy as always, there to greet me on my right, I found my desk ready for me right along the windows (spoiled).
On my first day, I got to attend the Discovery Innovation awards at the AFI theatre, where Discovery’s founder, John Hendricks, presented alongside Overhaulin’s Chris Jacobs. While every day was different, I was placed in charge of editorializing and distributing vertical content for TLC and Discovery Fit & Health. “Vertical Content” is content that is strategically aligned with our network programming. For example, TLC has “Bride Day” on Fridays, when most of our wedding shows are aired. I would pull blogs, images, articles, etc. and reformat them for multiple platforms such as Twitter, Pinterest, and other outlets to share with our viewers and spike audience engagement. I was also part of a domestic distribution marketing team for the summer. As a part of this team, I helped perform a SWOT analysis on Discovery’s domestic distribution campaigns, which are what we use to keep cable affiliates like Time Warner and Verizon Fios paying to include our channels in their cable subscriptions. We came up with a number of marketing suggestions and strategies, which we presented at the end of the summer to VPs and higher-ups in the company that are actually going to be implemented in 2014.
The excitement of arriving to work every day never wore off, but some days were definitely more exciting than others. I would have to say that the highlight of my summer was meeting Honey Boo Boo and family. I remember being told that there was a screening of the season 2 “Watch-n-Sniff” premier for employees downstairs; little did I know that the family was in the building. After the screening, the whole family got situated in their lawn chairs with our producers at the front of the room for a little Q&A. I must say, none of it is an act, these people are proud and not afraid to show it. I can’t think of too many instances when I’ve been so entertained. Afterwards, I got to meet the family and take pictures. For you loyal viewers who know what I’m talking about, the cheese balls were out, and Uncle Poodle is just as adorable in person.
There were numerous speakers throughout the summer, my favorite being the President and CEO David Zaslov, a regular looking guy in jeans and a button down running one of the most innovative and successful companies in the world. I got to tour C-SPAN and attend the Cable Show where every network and cable provider you can think of was there. I REALLY lucked out, because Shark Week happened to fall on my last week at Discovery. We celebrated with a bit of a Shark Week festival which included Shark Week manicures (yes, during work), pictures with Chompie, free shirts, Snuffy the Seals, Cold Stone cartons, fish tacos and a catered lunch from Salsaritas, boxes of special Shark Week Cupcakes from DC Cupcake and so much more.
I don’t think I would be able pick one favorite thing about my experience as a Discovery intern. From the people, to the special privileges and opportunities I was presented with, to the unique and meaningful work I did while I was there, I don’t think that I could have asked for a better summer. I really do encourage people to go for things even if they seem out of reach, because you never know if you might be wrong! I sure was, and now I have opportunities awaiting me that I never thought possible."
-Bridget
